Hot and Dry Weather

[atmccmn]

Most of us in northern region are experiencing hot and dry weather for almost a month now. The sunrays are very unforgiving and made a lot of damages too. THis plant is surely a marker of how dry the weather is.

Here's a photo of it last year during the rainy season.


My recent photo during hot season.

[shawnintland]

Hi Andy, what a cool looking Till, dry or not! Interesting how the leaves tighten their curls as if trying to hide from the Sun. We are usually a month behind you guys in weather patterns...guess I better hurry up on buying that timer and solenoid valves for my shade house! Just this morning I noticed our winds have swung around 180 degrees! Good luck, your collection is so magnificent I shudder to think of you losing anything at all!
PS What nep is that with the bright red/orange petioles (in the lower background of picture 1)?

[Amelie.Poulain]

Shawn, I thought it was a nepenthes too, but after really looking at it, I think it's something else.

Andy, could it be a dracaenae or something?

[atmccmn]

Shawn & Athene, after reading your thread & coming to think of it, it does make sense looking like one!. That is actually part of the bromeliad family, under the genus Aechmea.
It's Aechmea tayoensis, read that it could grow up to about 4' diameter. Native in Amazonian basin.
I'm still waiting for mine to happen
You better make your preparation. The air is dry and lights are too intense, especially today. I wonder when it's going to rain!!

[funkychips]

That is one nice strep with a crazy curl, Andy! My xeros never indicate anything to me rain or shine
Speaking of hot weather, one of my xeros just burst into bloom after so long:

[Amelie.Poulain]

funkychips, your xero 'did itself' ? You are just too much!

[funkychips]

Uh oh, sorry for the misleading words, edited . I meant to say, the xero 'did itself in' - was too fed up of the hot weather and decided to burst into flower.

[plantlover]

That's a very beautiful tillandsia.

[funkychips]

Aaron, do you grow Tillandsias as well? If you haven't before, you should try them, they are worth every cent seriously

[atmccmn]

Alvin, that's the thing. Sometimes when you like it or not, they just bloom. I know some like ionantha are seasonal bloomer. Some just simply bloom when they are happy to. Anyway, congrats. It's a big spike of infl.

I think you kinda pampered it. That's good. I'll show you mine how it looks like under hot direct sun for 6 hours! It curls into a ball!