Acanthostachys strobilacea

This has to be one of the strangest of the bromeliads. Its leaves are long and round in cross section and deeply channeled, hanging in cascades. A clumping plant, it makes a good hanging basket specimen. The inflorescence is a small cone of yellow-orange borne on a long, leaf-like stem. Widely distributed as an epiphyte in the Atlantic Forest and beyond, from Eastern Brazil to Argentina and Paraguay. A true oddity and a delight to grow.