I have a Tillandsia Cyanea that I have to do something with. It's by Living Trends and they put it in a small drainless pot with a magnet on the back. It's technically in a small pot within that pot, but it's still not healthy. Recently, while perusing youtube.com, specifically the Brad's Greenhouse channel, I saw that he had unpotted a Tillandsia Cyanea completely and made it into a hanging air plant.
He said that many people want to pot them in dirt, but that it really doesn't need it anymore than any other air plant because it's an epiphyte. I'd like to do something similar. It's obviously working for him, because he did an update video showing where he'd gotten a good bit of growth and two flow spikes off of it. He did say that he's roots had died, but that it wasn't a problem.
The only thing lacking in the video is how to water it. His plants are in a greenhouse, so you have high humidity. I'm also sure he probably mists it. However, I wanted more information, because the leaves on this plant are very grassy. It's not like my other Tillandsia that turns silver when dry and green when wet. That plant obviously absorbs moisture through it's leaves. It's not obvious to me that the Tillandsia Cyanea absorbs water this way. I don't want to dehydrate it.
Can anyone tell me how these absorb water? It's not through the roots, or at least no solely, because he said his roots pretty much died off. His is also growing in multiple directions, so I don't think the water is sitting in the base of the leaves like a regular bromeliad. Can anyone tell me how I'd water and fertilize this plant if I completely removed the pot and simply suspended it from wire? Thanks.