# Vivarium Bromeliad Care



## kwazarr (Oct 4, 2007)

Hey guys!

I had a question about caring for bromeliads in vivariums. As I understand it, bromeliads basically get their nutrients and water from the air. My question is in vivarium settings, do broms need any kind of additional nutrients etc? I ask bc I figure in viv settings, they aren't as likely to have bits of organic matter being deposited in their axils since they are not mounted in trees like in their natural environments. Anyone have any feedback on this?

Ross.


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## Smogre (Aug 11, 2006)

It's been my understanding that frog poo and dead flies help provide for this need.


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## slaytonp (Nov 14, 2004)

The epiphytic bromeliads have special structures which are absorbing pores of specialized cells, surrounded by scales, called trichomes. These are apparently very efficient, and there's always some sort of detritus and dust particles that are going to end up on the leaves or inside the axils of those that have water holding vases. They don't need any artificial nourishment. Fruit flies seem to love to drown in bromeliad cups, as do pinhead crickets. In a vivarium environment, there are also a lot of microorganisms and tiny critters that you may not see all over the place. 

Although few of us use UV light for our darts, I recently read a study that suggests that the reflective surface of the scales reflect the light (they said UV light in this case) in such a way that it confuses flying insects so that they fly into the plant rather than upwards. It was suggested that this was a semi-carnivorous trick. 

In any event, I've never "fed" my bromeliads in a tank, and they do just fine. Another thought, is that you don't want to encourage them to over-grow, either.


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## Arklier (Mar 1, 2004)

Most important thing about growing broms in my experience is that they get enough light and don't have their roots too wet. They like having water in the cups, but sitting in water makes them rot.


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