There is a Balm in Bromeliad

The title of this post makes no sense, but it is what we think when we see or say "bromeliad".

Anyhoo.... this weird plant came from a a craft fair about five years ago. 

We were assured it would eventually bloom.

One day when giving it a drink down the center as we were instructed, and as it would naturally capture rain and dew, we saw this.

Which became this.

And then this.

And soon it was a real flower-like thing.

This pretty pink emergence is just an extension of the plant leaves as are the colored "petals" of the poinsettia plant.

But soon it started to send out true little flowerlettes from the bracts.

Multicolored no less.

Our reading about the life cycle of the bromeliad tells us that this lovely event is actually the beginning of the end.

The plant will start to slowly die, but if we are lucky it will send out some side shoots called "pups" that can be re-potted to start new plants. That is how we got ours. Apparently the lady who sold it to us has raised many litters of pups and finds good homes for all of them. No paper training or shots needed.