Things to Avoid When Caring for Air Plants

Today we are going to take a look at some things that should be avoided when caring for air plants. With proper care, your air plants will be healthy, happy, and thriving! 

Copper

We all love those lovely geometric holders that are made out of copper. Don't they look amazing? What you might not know is that copper is actually toxic to air plants. Avoid the use of copper wire, copper plant holders or pressure-treated lumber. 
(Pressure treated wood contains chemicals including copper.)

Boron, Zinc, and Urea-Nitrogen

Before using any fertilizer on your air plants, make sure that it is specifically formulated for use on bromeliads or Tillandsia plants. Look out for ingredients such as boron, zinc, or urea-nitrogen as these elements are considered harmful to air plants. Just make sure that your fertilizer does contain nitrogen in a usable form.

Our fertilizer is formulated specifically for air plants and comes ready to use in a handy spray bottle! 

Salts + Other Chemicals 

When watering your air plants, make sure to use water that is free of salts or chlorine. We recommend using rain water, aquarium water, pond water, or tap water that you have allowed the chlorine to dissipate from for at least a few hours. 

We recommend to let tap water sit for a few hours because tap water contains chlorine which is not beneficial to happy air plants. Also, be sure to stay away from softened water. While this might be great for our hair and nails, it can cause salt deposits on your air plants leaves. If this salt is left on the leaves of air plants for too long, it can suffocate your air plant since it would prevent the trichomes from absorbing water and nutrients. 

 If you have any questions about air plant care, don't hesitate to reach out. We'd love to help. Email us at info@airplantdesignstudio.com