Bromeliads: The Connoisseur’s Guide
Gardening Botany Horticulture Illustrated Reference Nature Reference Plant Collecting Houseplant Care
Bromeliads: The Connoisseur’s Guide by Andrew Steens is the most comprehensive, heavily illustrated reference on these exotic plants ever published in English. Across 400 information-dense pages, the book profiles hundreds of species and hybrids—from familiar Aechmeas and Guzmanias to rarer Vrieseas and Tillandsias—each accompanied by crisp color photographs, detailed cultural notes, and close-up shots that reveal leaf patterning, flower structure, and scale. Whether you keep a single urn plant on a windowsill or maintain a climate-controlled greenhouse, Steens’ step-by-step guidance on light, temperature, watering, potting media, pests, and propagation turns trial-and-error into repeatable success.
What elevates this 2007 paperback above ordinary house-plant manuals is its “connoisseur” angle: the author devotes entire chapters to collector-worthy cultivars, shows how to breed your own crosses, and explains the subtle traits—leaf spination, trichome density, inflorescence branching—that separate a show-bench winner from everyday stock. A 40-page gallery of habitat shots from Central and South America places the plants in ecological context, while concise checklists help enthusiasts decide which varieties suit their climate and space. The result is a single volume that satisfies both the curious beginner and the hard-core collector who needs accurate names and proven cultural data.
Because the book is out of print yet still cited in every major bromeliad journal, clean copies in very good condition are increasingly sought after. This copy’s tight spine, unmarked pages, and vibrant illustrations make it an enduring desk reference you can leaf through daily without fear of damage—perfect for any gardener, designer, or naturalist who wants authoritative answers on one of the planet’s most diverse plant families.
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