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Species library › Tillandsia › Tillandsia capitata
Other Partly documented

Tillandsia capitata

A robust rosette air plant from Mexico, Honduras, Cuba and the Dominican Republic, found at a very wide range of elevations (7-2,850 m, median about 900 m). Most wild records come from the seasonally dry Pacific slope of western Mexico, so give it strong light, airflow and a drier winter. Many colourful cultivars are grown.

Tillandsia capitata
Photo: Photo by David J. Stang, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

The measured records cluster on the Pacific slope of Mexico from Sonora and Sinaloa to Oaxaca, where it grows as an epiphyte, and sometimes on rocks, in seasonally dry tropical and oak-pine woodland. The published sources consulted give no habitat detail beyond the country list.

7-2,850 m in the data (median 893 m from 53 records). Plants from the upper end see much cooler nights.

Mexico NorthwestMexico SouthwestMexico GulfHondurasCubaDominican Republic

🔒 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 CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, unmodified.