Tillandsia simulata

Small

Manual of the Southeastern Flora 270, 1503. 1933.

Endemic
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 22.

Plants single or clustering, flowering to 40 cm. Stems short. Leaves 15–30, many-ranked, erect to spreading, gray, 20–40 × 0.1–0.4 cm, densely appressed-grayish-scaly; sheath chestnut brown, narrowly elliptic, slightly inflated, not forming pseudobulb, 1.2–2 cm wide; blade very narrowly linear-triangular, leathery, margins involute, apex attenuate. Inflorescences: scape conspicuous, erect, 10–15 cm, 4–6 mm diam.; bracts densely imbricate, erect, like leaves but gradually smaller; sheath of bracts narrowing abruptly into blade; spikes erect to spreading, palmate, linear, compressed, 2–5 × 1 cm, apex acute; lateral branches 1–5. Floral bracts imbricate, erect, rose, broad (covering all or most of rachis, rachis not visible at anthesis), elliptic, keeled, 1.4–1.8 cm, thin-leathery, base not visible at anthesis, apex acute, surfaces appressed-grayish-scaly, venation slight apically. Flowers 5–30, conspicuous; sepals with adaxial pair connate, elliptic, keeled, to 1.6 cm, thin-leathery, veined, apex obtuse, surfaces slightly scaly; corolla tubular, petals erect, violet, ligulate, 3–4.5 cm; stamens exserted; stigma exserted, conduplicate-spiral. Fruits to 3 cm.


Phenology: Flowering spring.
Habitat: Epiphytic on a variety of hosts in swamps and moist hammocks, usually in strong light
Elevation: 0–30 m

Discussion

Tillandsia simulata is a distinct species, but preserved material often is misdetermined as Tillandsia bartramii Elliott. L. B. Smith and R. J. Downs (1977) treated T. simulata as a synonym under T. bartramii.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.