Air plants, also known as Tillandsia, are a unique and beautiful addition to any home. They require no soil, just a water soak once a week – making them easy to care for. They’re also perfect for almost any location in your house since they can be placed on just about anything! So you might be wondering, how long do air plants live? With proper care, they can survive for a few years.
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In this article, we will discuss some tips on how you can keep your rootless plant alive for as long as possible.
How Long Do Airplants Live?
If you’re wondering exactly how long do air plants live, it really depends on how well you take care of it. If you’re not watering it at all, that’s a sure way to have it turn brown and wither quickly. On the flip side, if you provide it with enough moisture and indirect light, your air plant could live for several years.
Keep in mind that air plants are natives of tropical climates and prefer temperatures between 50-90 degrees Fahrenheit. If you keep your airplant in an environment with extreme temperature changes, this can cause accelerated aging.
Air plants do try to survive by creating pups, so while you may not have the original air plant forever, you can have multiple generations of this air plant for years and years!
Continue reading to find out how to extend your air plants life span!
Air Plant Life Span – Ways To Keep Your Air Plant Alive For Longer
With proper water, nutrition, sunlight, and temperature variables, you can expect your air plant to live for at least 2 years, sometimes longer.
Watering
Air plants need to be watered at least once a week for proper hydration. The best way to water your air plant is by soaking it in room temperature water for 10-20 minutes, allowing the leaves and stems to absorb enough moisture.
Unless you live in an extremely humid environment, a spritz of water a week is not enough.
You may be interested in: Keeping your air plant alive while traveling
Nutrients
Air plants need to be fed with fertilizer once every few months. The fertilizer provides the essential nutrients that the plant needs to stay healthy and vibrant. I like to use a liquid fertilizer in the water while the plants are soaking.
Too much and your plant may start getting brown leaves (continue reading about brown leaves on air plants here).
Sunlight
Another way to encourage a long air plant life span is to give it indirect sunlight. They need a light source to photosynthesize, but direct sunlight can burn the leaves over time. That’s why indirect sunlight is the best so your air plant gets the light it needs but not too much.
Extreme Temperature Fluctuations
While it’s expected for winter months to be colder than summer months, you want to try and avoid temperature fluctuations as much as possible. By this, I mean going from hot to cold quickly. This can be especially hard in climates where there are extreme temperature swings from day to night.
Try to avoid these temperature fluctuations by keeping your air plant away from window sills and heaters. (See a chart about window sill temperature fluctuations here)
Keep reading – how fast do air plants grow?, how big do air plants get?
Extending Air Plant Life Span With Pups
Air plants are pretty smart and they naturally try to extend their life span by producing “pups”, or baby air plants. These pups will grow from the mother plant and can be removed once they’re big enough and given their own space. This is a great way to make sure you have multiple generations of air plants in your home!
You may need to trim these off your air plant if they are not easily releasing from the plant.
How Long Do Air Plants Live? In Summary
Now that you know how long do air plants live (2+ years) and how to extend their life span, go out and get one today to add a unique and beautiful addition to your home. With proper care, your air plant should last for several years. Good luck and happy planting!
