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Species library › Guzmania › Guzmania musaica
Other Well documented

Guzmania musaica

A stemless tank bromeliad from wet lowland and foothill forests of Costa Rica, Panama and north-west South America, grown for its striking leaves marked with dark green and reddish cross-bands. The plant is monocarpic: after flowering, with pink-red bracts and waxy yellow flowers, the rosette dies and leaves offsets. Grow it warm, shaded and humid, with the central cup kept filled with clean water.

Guzmania musaica
Photo: Dario, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry
Light ShadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

Rainforest epiphyte, forming rosettes 20–40 cm tall in humid, shaded forest. Its patterned, soft leaves suit a shaded understory rather than an exposed canopy.

GBIF records run from sea level to 1700 m, with a median of 350 m (274 records), so it is mainly a lowland and foothill plant.

Costa RicaPanamaColombiaEcuadorVenezuela

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC0 licence, unmodified.