Hello everyone! About six months ago my then girlfriend ( now my wife !!) had some air plant issues ( the main issue was that we didn’t know how to care for it and it was extremely dead. An ex plant if you will). Well my wonderful wife really likes air plants and with everything we learned wanted to try again. She has been diligently watering it once a week for a 15 minute soak, and last night the plant… fell apart a bit. I think it may be rot ? Parts of the leaves are still green so I’m assuming it’s somewhat alive ? Any advice would be great, she really loves her air plant and has been trying pretty dang hard to keep it happy and alive ( and is devastated by this possible second plant murder). Thank you so much! ( not pictured : the large root chunk that sort of fell off and dissolved mid soak).
by Ancientgreeksloot
2 Comments
That plant looks dead, I’m sorry.
Silvery air plants are built for more arid climates, so once a week might be too often for soaking.
The biggest culprit here though is the bulbous base; if your wife is soaking the entire plant, including the base, and not letting it drain and dry completely every time, then it’s likely that water got trapped in the bottom and rotted the plant.
To be extra safe you really want to only soak the tips of these air plants.
Make sure to shake out the excess water. I hang mine upside down for a while to make sure it’s all drained out. Same thing if you mist heavily and/or too often. That plant can still make it. Leave it upside down in bright light that’s well ventilated. Mist lightly once a week max. It will likely come back. Good luck!