Spanish Moss ( Tillandsia usneoides )
Spanish moss is a flowering plant that grows upon larger trees, commonly the Southern Live Oak or Bald Cypress in the southeastern United States from Texas and Florida north to southern Arkansas and Virginia.
Spanish moss is not a moss but a bromeliad—a perennial herb in the pineapple family. Most bromeliads, including Spanish moss, are epiphytes. Epiphytes grow on other plants, but do not rely on them for nutrients. They take nutrients from the air and debris that collects on the plant. Spanish moss has permeable scales that “catch” moisture and nutrients. Spanish moss does not have any roots. It attaches to substrates by wrapping its stems around a surface.
As a flowering plant, Spanish moss reproduces from seeds, which is ultimately where new plants come from. Tiny green flowers form in the fuzzy leaf axils and are often fragrant at nighttime. The stems of Spanish moss can grow 20 feet long and harbor pollinators for its flowers, such as the zebra longwing butterfly. The spent flowers yield seedpods that turn brown and split open when they mature to release feathery seeds that float on wind currents.
Many homeowners think that Spanish moss kills their trees. This is not the case because the moss is not parasitic. The only thing Spanish moss uses trees for is support.
