Bob Hobden wrote:

I have been thinking about those for our large Cordylines but I'm not sure
about their hardiness if we keep getting frosty winters like this and last
years.
Where did you get yours from?

I think I've always had B. nutans knocking about - certainly for the
past 35 years. If you want some of that, I'm sure I can find a few
bits to get you started. Sometimes I'm reduced to just a small pot-
full and then when I need more, I split it into single growths and
away it goes. When I moved here, I pushed a few bits into shallow
soil on top of a low wall and it has now spread to cover it. If I
want a fast, cheap tropical effect, I simply grab a few bits, wrap the
roots in some sphagnum moss with a bit of compost and tie them up. If
kept wet they soon start sending out new growths and in no time
there's a ball of the stuff that can be hung on trees etc. Tillandsia
bergeri does the same, but is slower and doesn't need any moss or
compost since it rarely develops many if any roots. That one just
absorbs moisture from the air and if we get a dry spell, I simply
drench it with the hose.

As to B. distachya is a slightly different story. It was sent to me
as something completely different about 5-6 years ago and has built up
far more slowly. I think Fir Tree Farm nurseries are still knocking
it out as Billbergia modreana, which it isn't. They have a few
species, but their labelling used to need being taken with a small
pinch of salt. They've reduce the range now, so there are fewer
opportunities for incorrect ids. Distachya is one of the 'tank'
species and holds a fair amount of water within the grey leaf funnel.
More exposed bits have been clobbered this winter, but there's enough
of the clump left to carry on. I would prefer to wait until summer
before deiding whether there's enough to pull it apart.