BIRD ROCK TROPICALS BLOG
  • Bird Rock Tropicals
  • Author Profiles
  • Eco-Tour
    • Gallery
  • Product

tillandsia Journal

CORK: A NATURAL RENEWABLE PRODUCT

4/7/2017

2 Comments

 
Picture
Cork has been used for mounting orchids and bromeliads for years. Tillandsia airplants grow best when attached to cork bark. The uneven surface is perfect for finding just the right spot to attach them to. They will quickly root and become permanent. ​
​
I just returned from tens days in Portugal and spent several days in Alentejo, walking in some old cork oak forests. ​Alentejo is in south central Portugal and is where the majority of the cork trees are farmed. 

Picture
Most of the farms have been operated by the same owners for many generations. They tend to stay in the family, as it takes 43 years for the first viable crop of cork to be harvested.

Once the tree is planted, the first harvest is twenty five years later. This first harvest is the “virgin cork”, the same type that is used for mounting plants. The bark is thick, rough and uneven. The bark is then harvested every nine years. The second harvest is less rough, but not acceptable for cork stoppers. This harvest is ground up and used for other production such as flooring. It is not until the third harvest, (the tree is now 43 years old) that the cork quality is the type that can be used for making cork stoppers.



Read More
2 Comments
    Pamela Koide HyattPamela Koide Hyatt
    Horticulturalist & Explorer Specializing in the Genus Tillandsia.

    View complete author profile here.

    Sign Up for Email Updates
    Email notification of new blog posts.

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    April 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    January 2016
    November 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013

    Categories

    All
    Awards
    CITES
    Cork
    Habitat
    Hybrids
    Mounting Tillandsias
    Photography
    Saxicolous
    Taxonomy
    T. Curly Slim
    T. Latifolia
    T. Pamelae
    T. Samantha
    T. Seleriana
    Viviparous
    Watering

© Pamela Koide Hyatt , Bird Rock Tropicals
Photos used under Creative Commons from cm195902, ggallice