Guzmania musaica
Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- gewz-MAIN-ee-uh mew-zay-IH-kuh
- Description
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Mosaic vase is an epiphyte native to parts of Central and South America in the Bromeliaceae family. It has unusual tubular brilliant yellow-green flowers and pink to red bracts in spikes from June to August. The strap-like leaves are in a rosette and are up to 20 inches long.
Mosaic vase prefers a sunny to a half-shady location in well-drained soil made for orchids and bromeliads. It can also be grown on wood as an epiphyte. Water moderately and mist regularly in summer. The rosette should be kept filled with soft water outside the flowering period. Change water every 3 to 4 weeks to keep it from rotting,
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: mealybugs are possible pests
VIDEO Created by Elisabeth Meyer for "Edibles, Bulbs, and Houseplants" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Guzmania
- Species:
- musaica
- Family:
- Bromeliaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panamá, Venezuela
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Epiphyte
- Herbaceous Perennial
- Houseplant
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Clumping
- Growth Rate:
- Slow
- Maintenance:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Available Space To Plant:
- 12 inches-3 feet
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b, 12a, 12b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Description:
- The fruits split by separating between the septa of adjacent carpels
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Orange
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Spike
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Tubular
- Flower Petals:
- Bracts
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Unusual flowers shaped like bundles of candy corn in spikes of brilliant greenish-yellow tubular flowers with pink to red bracts from June to August.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Variegated
- Leaf Feel:
- Leathery
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Rosulate
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Up to 20-inch leaves are in a basal rosette, overlapping to form a funnel-like central 'vase'. Simple, stiff, strap-shaped, entire. Light green, marked with irregular, horizontal dark green and reddish to brown striations. Offsets may form between the base leaves.
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Container
- Houseplants
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Heat
- Humidity
