Chilean Puya, Puya chilensis, Pitcairnioideae, Bromeliaceae.

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Chilean Puya, Puya chilensis, Pitcairnioideae, Bromeliaceae. A Bromeliad Native to Chile, South America. Puya chilensis, is a terrestrial bromeliad originating from the arid hillsides of Chile. An evergreen perennial it forms large, dense rosettes of grey-green, strap like leaves edged with hooked spines. The green-yellow flowers are born on spikes up to 2 m high and which resemble a medieval mace. Spreading by offsets; over time Puya chilensis can colonise large areas. Growth is slow and plants may take twenty years or more to flower. Leaf spines point inward as well as outward and have been known to trap birds and small animals. Unable to escape the victim dies of starvation and its decaying body then provides additional nutrients to the Puya.

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Size: 3477px × 5031px
Location: Chile
Photo credit: © Florapix / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 2, america, botanical, botany, bromeliaceae, bromeliad, chile, chilean, chilensis, cornwall, dense, evergreen, flora, florapix, flower, flowers, green, green-yellow, grey-green, growing, high, hooked, inflorescence, large, leaf, leaves, mace, medieval, native, natural, nature, needles, perennial, pitcairnioideae, plant, plants, puya, resemble, rosettes, sharp, south, spike, spikes, spines, succulent, succulents, terrestrial, uk