Native to South America, Brocchinia reducta is a rare, carnivorous bromeliad. Ill-fated insects slide down their leaves into the watery reserves at the base where they are slowly digested. These unusual bromeliads are a fun addition to any carnivorous plant enthusiast's collection. They appreciate high humidity, bright light, and cool temperatures.
These are small plants, 1-2” tall and many are clumpy.
Care Instructions
Growth Habit: Brocchinia reducta is a bromeliad, growing upwards with tightly whirled leaves forming a tunnel, this species does not unfurl its leaves and open wide like other bromeliad species, if yours does that is a sign it needs more light. Lower leaves will die back, leaving a papery husk that you don’t need to trim. They will form pups at the base of the plant over time, making a clump of plants. Mature size is 12-24".
Sun: In areas where it can be grown outdoors bright, diffuse light is best. In greenhouses and terrariums, they appreciate full to part as long as you can keep them cool. If grown under lights, keep the lights on a 10-12 hour day-length and hang them 10-12” from the plant depending on the strength of your light.
Water & Humidity: Water overhead in order to fill the middle of the plant, keep the soil moist but not constantly wet. Only use reverse osmosis, distilled or rain water as these plants are very sensitive to the minerals and salts in water. Brocchina reducta need humidity of at least 60% to thrive. Growing them in less humidity can lead to slower growth and more browning/crisping of the leaves, if you have lower humidity, water more frequently.
Temperature: 45 degrees - 80 degrees but can tolerate brief heat waves up to 100 as long as plant is well watered and temperatures cool at night. A night time drop in temps of 10-20 degrees is preferred.
Dormancy: None needed or required.
Fertilizer: Apply diluted Maxsea fertilizer once or twice a month to the leaves and inside the central water reserve of the plant.
Soil & Repotting: We grow our Brocchinia in a mix of long-fibered New Zealand sphagnum moss, orchid bark, pumice, and perlite. You can order our Nepenthes soil to use for your Brocchinia, but you do not need to repot your plant for at least a year after receiving it from us. You can repot every three years and only move to a slightly bigger pot.
More Information: For more information, check out our FAQ page or our YouTube channel!
