|                    Ball-moss
                      |  
              
                |                    Tillandsia recurvata  
                      |  
              
                |                    Bromeliaceae 
                      |  
  
              
                 Landscape Uses:
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                 Accent epiphyte; on live oaks along forest edges. | 
               
                Ecological Restoration Notes:  | 
               
              
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                | Availability: | 
               
              
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                 Grown by enthusiasts. | 
               
              
                | Description: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Epiphytic ball-shaped herb. | 
               
              
                | Height: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 4-6 inches in height.  About as broad as tall. | 
               
              
                | Growth Rate: | 
               
              
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                 Slow. | 
               
              
                | Range: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Monroe County Keys north to southeastern Georgia and west to Arizona; West Indies, Mexico, Central America and South America.  Rare in the Monroe County Keys south of Key Largo and perhaps absent from the middle Keys. | 
               
              
                | Habitats: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Moist forests and swamps. | 
               
              
                | Soils: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Epiphytic; grows on the trunks and branches of trees and shrubs. | 
               
              
                | Nutritional Requirements: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Low; it grows on nutrient poor substrate. | 
               
              
                | Salt Water Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water. | 
               
              
                | Salt Wind Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation. | 
               
              
                | Drought Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 High; does not require any supplemental water once established. | 
               
              
                | Light Requirements: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Full sun. | 
               
              
                | Flower Color: | 
               
              
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                 Whitish-green. | 
               
              
                | Flower Characteristics: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Inconspicuous. | 
               
              
                | Flowering Season: | 
               
              
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                 Spring-fall. | 
               
              
                | Fruit: | 
               
              
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                 Green to brown capsule with hairy, wind dispersed seeds. | 
               
              
                | Wildlife and Ecology: | 
               
              
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                | Horticultural Notes: | 
               
              
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                 Can be grown from seed and division. | 
               
              
                | Comments: | 
               
              
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                    George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Key Largo, Florida, 2013
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                    George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Key Largo, Florida, 2013
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                    George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Key Largo, Florida, 2013
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                    George D. Gann in habitat, Everglades National Park, Key Largo, Florida, 2013
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