Bromeliad or air plant with brown tips or white spots? Look at the water.
These plants drink through their leaves and their central cup, so whatever is dissolved in the water is left sitting on the plant when it dries. That is why water quality matters more for them than for almost anything else you grow.
- Removes chlorine, chloramine and fluoride
- Adds back 20+ minerals
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Is it your water?
White, chalky spots or a crust on the leaves or in the cup.
Leaf tips are brown and dry.
You mist, soak or fill the cup with hard, softened or city tap water.
Two of three and the water is worth changing:
What each symptom means
White chalky spots are mineral deposits from hard water drying on the leaf.
Brown tips mean underwatering, dry air, or salts and chlorine.
A brown, mushy center means water stagnated in the cup; empty and refill it regularly.
An air plant curling tightly means it is thirsty; soak it.
A bromeliad's mother plant browning after it flowers is natural; the pups carry on.
For these plants the water is a main cause, not a minor one. Avoid softened water entirely; the sodium is left on the leaf. One honest limit: a filter that does not soften water, including ours, will not stop hard-water spotting. For white spots use rain water or wipe the leaves. What it removes is the chlorine, chloramine and fluoride that brown the tips.
Watering Can With Filter and Remineralizer for House Plants
Filters chlorine, chloramine, fluoride and lead as you pour, then adds back 20+ minerals
$69 · Free shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee
plus sales tax where applicable
Less than a season of distilled water jugs, and nothing to carry.
Three steps to clean leaves
Water with filtered or rain water, and flush the bromeliad's cup every week or two.
Soak air plants for twenty to thirty minutes weekly, then dry them upside down.
Bright, indirect light and moving air.
Watering Can With Filter and Remineralizer for House Plants
Filters chlorine, chloramine, fluoride and lead as you pour, then adds back 20+ minerals
$69 · Free shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee
plus sales tax where applicable
Less than a season of distilled water jugs, and nothing to carry.
When it is not the water
A soft, brown base that pulls apart is rot from water sitting too long. Let air plants dry fully within four hours of soaking.
The Tap Water Plant Guide
Which 12 houseplants react to tap water, how to tell water damage from overwatering, and four ways to fix it — including the free ones.
Frequently asked questions.
Better water, tonight's watering.
- $69 · Free shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee
- Free shipping
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Replaceable filter packs