Spanish Moss

plants · tropical · epiphytes

Not a moss at all. Despite its name, Spanish moss is actually a flowering plant called a bromeliad, related to pineapples. It gets the name from early European explorers who thought it looked like gray beards.

Lives on trees. Spanish moss is an epiphyte, meaning it grows on tree branches without harming the tree. It takes water and nutrients from the air and rain instead of from the soil.

Travels the Americas. Spanish moss grows naturally from Mexico and the southern United States all the way down through Central America and South America, making it the most widespread bromeliad in the world.

Old man's nickname. People call Spanish moss 'old man's beard' because its long, gray, stringy strands hanging from trees look like an elderly person's whiskers. In French Polynesia, they call it 'grandpa's beard' instead.

Blooming plant. Spanish moss produces tiny yellow or red flowers, and you can sometimes spot them hidden within its tangled strands.