Tillandsia bartramii - Bartram's wild pine

The genus Tillandsia includes over 400 species ranging from the southern U.S. through South America. A dozen species are native to Florida. This plant forms a rosette of narrow, gray leaves with a flower spike emerging from the center. Individual plants die after flowering but new plants grow from the base to form a dense cluster. These clusters of rosettes grow on trunks and large branches of trees. They are epiphytes that take their moisture and minerals from the rain and air. They do not harm the plants on which they grow.