Sign in Start free
Species library › Vriesea › Vriesea psittacina
Other Well documented

Vriesea psittacina

A small, soft-leaved tank bromeliad from the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil, known for its bright red and yellow parrot-coloured flower spikes. It grows on trees in humid forest, often near streams and waterfalls, and is one of the parents behind many Vriesea hybrids. It wants bright, indirect light, warmth and humid, moving air.

Vriesea psittacina
Photo: Lindley, J., Public domain, 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 Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

An epiphyte on trees in humid Atlantic Forest. Wild records cluster around waterfalls, stream trails and forested hills in Rio de Janeiro state, including the edges of the city itself. Water collects in the leaf rosette.

No recorded elevations were available. The localities, such as Mendanha, Magé, Cachoeiras de Macacu and Santa Teresa, suggest lowland to submontane forest from near sea level to about 800 m.

Rio de JaneiroEspírito Santo

🔒 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

Grow Vriesea psittacina? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Start free Sign in

More Vriesea

Vriesea hieroglyphica Vriesea carinata Vriesea friburgensis Vriesea platynema Vriesea barilletii Vriesea fenestralis Vriesea procera Vriesea saundersii Vriesea schwackeana Vriesea wawrana Vriesea bituminosa Vriesea bleheri All 308 →

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 Public domain licence, unmodified.