How To Care For Air Plants | Indoor Plant Guide
Air plants are a stunning and unique addition to any house plant collection! The name “air plant” is actually a bit misleading. Members of the Tillandsia genus are so-called not because they can thrive on air alone, but because they require no soil at all to grow. In fact, assuming that Tillandsia only needs air to survive is one of the most common mistakes we see in air plant care.
When it comes to indoor plant care, air plants (Tillandsia) are supposed to be some of the easiest. For starters, they don’t even need soil, absorbing water and nutrients through scales on their leaves — in the wild they survive just hanging onto the bark of trees and whatnot, catching whatever bit of rain and bird poop that comes their way. But just like succulents and orchids, some people have trouble keeping them alive.
Here are the best practices we recommend for air plant care. First, we’ll talk about how to care for air plants in general, and then we’ll talk about adaptations in air plant care for aquariums, terrariums, and mounted Tillandsia.