The Plant Killer’s Plant

The Plant Killer’s Plant

This plant is so easy to grow it gets its nutrients and water straight from the air!

In nature Spanish Moss (Tillandsia usneoides) it is an epiphyte, so it grows on top of other trees.

However, it doesn’t normally hurt a tree unless it gets so thick that it blocks the sunlight out.

Perfect  for you non-green thumbed people out there—it can be grown in your home  placing it in decorative containers or hangings and just spritzing with  water occasionally (or dunking in water). In humid environments, no  spritzing needed, it can just grow itself!

In nurseries it is sometimes sold as an “air plant”, though it is not a moss, but rather a relative of pineapples—a bromeliad.

This  plant has a long history of use for a number of things. Today it is  mostly used for its decorative nature and used as a sort of mossy  covering in pots or in arts & crafts; however, it has also been used  for a building insulation, packing material or stuffing in various  products, mulch, in swamp coolers, and in the early 1900s it was used  for the padding in car seats.

Medicinally,  Spanish Moss has been used by Native Americans in the southern US as a  tea for fevers, and in South America for childbirth and for rheumatism.

There  are also reports and some scientific evidence it may be good for  diabetes, as well as for skin care. Confirmed activities include  hypoglycemic, antimicrobial, antiviral, and antitumor.

Currently,  there is interest and research on this plant for its possible use as a  “biomonitor” for air quality in urbanized areas. As the plant is made to  absorb nutrients through specialized scales on its leaves, poor air  quality makes changes to the plant’s metabolism and scales which can  then be analyzed, leading to air analysis.

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*This  content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not  intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of such advice  or treatment from a personal physician.

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