How to propagate air plant?

Why do air plants only bloom once in their life?

It is very easy to propagate air plant since air plants propagate themselves naturally after they bloom. You can learn how to propagate air plant with the easy methods below and grow your own collection of air plants with some patience and care.
 

How to propagate air plant by division?

The easiest way to propagate air plant is by dividing the pups or baby plants from the parent plant. Only remove the pup when it is about ⅓ the size of the parent plant. Hold on to the parent plant with one hand and gently pull off the pup with the other hand. The baby plant should come off easily when it is mature enough to separate from the parent plant.

How to grow air plant tillandsias from pups (baby plants)?

Once you collect the baby air plants from the mother plant, water them as usual along with other air plants. Try to place them somewhere with high humidity level or mist the baby air plants more frequently to promote growth.

Baby air plants are also more sensitive to very bright or direct light so make sure you keep them somewhere with moderate light level to prevent burning.

Keep in mind that most air plants are generally more slow growing. When you propagate air plant, expect to wait weeks or months to notice new growth.

How to grow air plants from seed?

Besides growing air plant from pups, you can also propagate air plant from seeds. Collect the feather-like seeds from the seed pods after your air plants bloom.

Put the seeds on a wet bed of sphagnum moss and cover up the tray of moss with a plastic lid to keep the humidity high. Water the tray with seeds and moss as frequently as needed to prevent the mixture from drying out completely.

How long does it take to grow air plants from seed?

Growing air plants from seed can take 3 months or longer for the seed to sprout and another year or so from then on for the seedlings to grow into young plants. How to propagate air plant is actually very simple and you can do it at home. But it does take some patience for the air plants to grow into sizable specimens.