How Long Does It Take to Regrow the Guzmania Plant?

Guzmania Basics

• Guzmanias are hardy from U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 10 to zone 12, so they require a specific range of temperature and level of humidity to survive. Like many bromeliads, they are epiphytes, meaning that they grow gripping the sides of trees and drawing nutrients and moisture from the air around them. Indoors, they do best in temperatures that range between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit and at 40 to 60 percent relative humidity. In the wild, the cup-shaped inflorescence atop the plant catches rain, leaves and insects that provide nutrients for the plant. Indoors, misting and filling the cup with water and feeding the plant with half-strength houseplant food while it’s growing must suffice.

Producing Pups

• Guzmanias are typically received as single plants in bloom and remain so for three to six months. Flowers bloom inside brightly colored, specialized leaves called bracts that give the plant its common name of scarlet star. For the last few weeks of its bloom, new plants, called pups, begin growing at the base of the parent. As the bright bracts fade and die, the pups, two or more of them, grow. Unless pups are repotted as they appear, they will increase in number with each growth cycle, overcrowding the pot until the number of pups decreases and mature plants cease setting new pups.

Bromeliad Variables

• Epiphytes are minimalists -- their little roots are designed to grab tree bark, not provide all the nutrients the plant needs. Guzmania planted in regular potting soil may suffer root rot before pups can become established, so ensure that your plant has been potted in an orchid medium or other light, well-draining potting mixture. After separating each pup from the parent, taking some roots along, plant the green pups in their own terra cotta pots full of orchid mix and mist them daily to bring them into bloom.

Fast-track Growth

• Once faded, the parent guzmania plant is destined to die, so cutting it back redirects energy to the pups. With the right potting mix, humidity and bright light, pups mature and bloom in one to two months. Shorten the time to maturity to three to four weeks by tying the pots in plastic bags and putting a slice of apple with each pup. The apple gives off ethylene, which speeds growth in plants. Remove the bag and apple slice as soon as bracts begin to show color -- ethylene can also cause misshapen or shortened plants or abscission, meaning leaf drop.