Tillandsia caliginosa W Till Pl. Syst. Evol. :147
(1984)
Syn. Tillandsia crocata
var. tristis Rauh Brom. Studien 43 :17-19
(1983)
Plant- short stemmed,
flowering to 20 to 40 cm high; stem simple or branched ± 8 cm long, 0.5 cm
thick.
Leaf- ± 10,
distichous.
Leaf sheath- to 2 cm long,
2.4 cm wide, lively green, strongly nerved naked.
Leaf blade- horizontal
spreading to reflexed, 12 to 18 cm long, lineal subulate, long attenuate,
(flexuous – DB!), rolled inwards, 2 to 5 mm thick, dense grey lepidote, scales
eccentric.
Floral stem- very thin, 10 to
15 cm long, straight or abundantly geniculate, dense grey lepidote.
Scape bract- 0 – 2 , leaflike.
Inflorescence- always simple,
laxly distichous, to 6 cm long and 0.5 to 1 cm wide, 2 to 4 flowered, strongly
lepidote, flat, erect or flexuous rhachis visible.
Flower- short stemmed
erect.
Flower bracts- erect ± 1.5 to
2 cm long, as long as or shorter than the sepal, not keeled, almost enveloping
the base of the rhachis, brownish-green, dense grey lepidote.
Sepal- both posterior
ones keeled and joined for a short way, dense grey lepidote.
Petal- very small,
with smooth wide 2 x 2 mm, dark, almost blackish brown or with 1 (-1.5) cm long
and 4 mm wide rolled back tip, dark brown platten which has a dirty yellow
mid-stripe.
Stamen
& Style-
deeply enclosed.
Note – both forms not now recognised