#hechtia

Hechtia jaliscana

Hechtias belong to the Bromeliad Family, and though the occur in Texas and in Central America, they mostly come from Mexico. This is the case for Hechtia jalicscana, which takes its name from the state of Jalisco. It can be found in the mountains to the north of Guadalajara. As is usual in its genus, it has separate male and female plants, and the yellow pollen seen at the flower mouths above shows that our specimen is a male. The leaf coloration is variable, but plants in sunny positions often develop flushes of red, orange and yellow.

Plant of the Day

Sunday 29 January 2023

Hechtia species are bromeliads that originate from Florida to Brazil but are primarily native to Mexico. This range gives Hechtia special adaptations allowing them to handle conditions other bromeliads will not including thriving in bright, sunny deserts and tolerating colder temperatures. Unlike succulents Hechtia species do not hold water in their tissues to tackle drought but slow their growth when water is not available.

Hechtia sp.

Hechtia is a large genus in the Bromeliad Family, with species found in many habitats throughout Mexico. Because there is no book devoted to the genus, it can be very hard to identify plants, so we have labeled this one simply as "Hechtia sp." It comes from near the town of Huejuquilla in northern Jalisco, and although the plant pictured has green leaves, these can be red-tinged if grown in a sunny position (our plant has a large Agave growing over it, but perhaps it will have its chance to turn red once the Agave flowers and dies). Hechtias have separate male and female plants, and now that ours has flowered we know that it is a female, with the flowers looking a bit like tiny pineapples with purplish sides and white tops.

Hechtia argentea

Hechtia is a genus in the Bromeliad Family, with most of the species found in Mexico, though the genus extends across the border northward into Texas and southward into Guatemala. The plants generally have rosettes of sword-like leaves with sharp teeth along their edges, usually with tall wiry flower stalks bearing many small flowers. This one is Hechtia argentea, from the state of Hidalgo in Mexico. Its name refers to the striking silver color seen in mature plants, though our young specimen (flowering only for the second time) has red-tinged leaves. Unlike most bromeliads, the species in Hechtia have separate male and female plants, and the yellow pollen produced by the flowers of our plant show it to be a male.