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Tillandsia secunda var. major (Large Tillandsia) - A terrestrial or saxicolous (growing on rock) bromeliad that forms attractive rosettes 12-24 inches across of silver green narrow arching leaves. The inflorescence scape arches outward to 3 to 4 feet long with a rose red scape and side branches that bear violet colored downward facing flowers, all on one side of the scape. It also produces many offsets at the inflorescence branch nodes that get good sized before falling off.
Plant in full sun (coastal) to light shade and can be grown attached to rocks, wood or in a well-drained soil where they will grow faster and larger. Water frequently to regularly for best growth. Has proven hardy in short duration temperatures down to around 25° F.
Tillandsia secunda var. major grows naturally on rocky slopes in shallow soils or as a saxicolous (on rock) plant in full sun in the mountainous regions of the Andes in central Ecuador. The name for the genus was one that Carl Linnaeus used in 1753 for the type species Tillandsia utriculate with the name honoring the Swedish physician and botanist Elias Tillandz (born Tillander). The specific epithet means "one sided" and is in reference to the way the flowers all are dorsally attached and face downward. This variety has also been called Tillandsia secunda var. vivipara because of the numerous offsets produced after flowering on the inflorescence.
We received our first start of this plant in the mid-1980s from Daryll Combs, who had a great little nursery in Carpinteria, California called Daryll's Exotic Plants (he now has Daryll's Nursery in Dallas, OR). While we had it planted in various places in our gardens we didn't start growing it for sale until 2004, always by planting up the plantlets that formed on the older garden specimens. We continued to grow this great unusual plant right up until we closed the nursery in 2025.
The information displayed on this page about Tillandsia secunda var. major is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.
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