About Tillandsia imperialis É.Morren ex Roezl
Tillandsia imperialis É.Morren ex Roezl is an epiphytic flowering plant species belonging to the genus Tillandsia. This species is endemic to Mexico, found specifically in the states of Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, and Veracruz, growing at elevations between 800 and 2,600 meters. Its native range covers the eastern portion of the eastern Sierra Madre Mountains and the eastern portion of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. In its natural habitat of moist cloud forests, this species primarily grows as an epiphyte on the branches and in the hollows of Pinus patula and Quercus laurina trees, or on lianas growing on these trees. As a bromeliad, it prefers consistently moist conditions and cannot survive extended periods of drought or low humidity. Europeans first collected this species in 1866 near Orizaba, Veracruz, and it was formally named by Edouard Morren in 1881. In Mexico, its common name is súchil, also spelled xóchil, which derives from the Classical Nahuatl word for flower. During November and December, people living in rural areas of Mexico occasionally collect this plant to decorate nativity scenes and religious arches, alongside the related bromeliad T. usneoides.
