Spanish Moss

Tillandsia usneoides L. Sp. PI. cd. 2. 41 1. 1762
Renealmia umeoijes I-. Sp. PI. 287. 1753. TiUandsia trichoides H. B. K. Nov. Gen. & Sp. 1: 290. 1816. Dendropogon usneoides Raf. Fl. Tell. 4: 25. 1838. Strepsia usneoides Steud. Nom. Bot. ed. 2. 2: 645. 1841. TiUandsia crinita Willd.; Beer, Bromel. 152. 1857.
Plant growing pendent from trees in branching strands up to 8 m. long; roots absent ; stem sympodial, less than 1 mm. in diameter, the internodes 3-6 cm. long with only the extreme base covered by the leaf-sheath, strongly curved; pseudo-axillary branches, actually a continuation of the main axis, very short and concealed by the ba.sal leaf-sheath, bearing 2-3 leaves; leaves distichous-ranked, 25-50 mm. long, densely cinercous-lepidote or ferruginous-lcpidote; sheaths elliptic, involute, up to 8 mm. long; blades filiform, less than I mm. in diameter; scape practically none; inflorescence reduced to a single pseudo-terminal flower; floral bract ovate, apiculate or caudate, densely lepidote, shorter than the sepals; flower subsessile; sepals narrowly ovate, acute, up to 7 mm, long, thin, strongly nerved, glabrous, equally short-connate; petals narrow, acute or obtuse, 9-11 nun. long, pale-green or blue; stamens deeply included, exceeding the pistil; capsule up to 25 mm. long, cylindric, abruptly short-beaked.
Type locality: Virginia, Jamaica.
Distribution: Virginia to Texas along the coast, and southward to central Argentina and Chile.