Bromelia balansae

Bromelia balansae

The heart of flame (Bromelia balansae Mez, 1891) is a herbaceous species belonging to the Bromeliaceae family.

Systematics –
From a systematic point of view it belongs to:
Eukaryota domain,
Kingdom Plantae,
Magnoliophyta division,
Subdivision Magnoliophytina,
Class Liliopsida,
Subclass Zingiberidae,
Order Bromeliales,
Bromeliad family,
Subfamily Bromelioideae.
The terms are synonyms:
– Bromelia argentina Baker;
– Bromelia balansae f. balansae;
– Bromelia balansae f. tricolor (M.B.Foster) L.B.Sm.;
– Bromelia balansae var. tricolor M.B.Foster;
– Karatas guianensis Baker;
– Karatas guianensis Hort.
Within this species the following form is recognized:
– Bromelia balansae f. tricolor.

Etymology –
The term Bromeliad is the name proposed by the French missionary, botanist and explorer Charles Plumier (1646-1704) in honor of the Swedish physician and botanist Olaf Bromel (Bromelius, 1639-1705), a name later taken up by Linnaeus.
The specific balansae epithet was given in honor of the French botanist and explorer Benedict Balansa (1825-1891) born in Narbonne in 1825, who made numerous collecting trips for the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris.

Geographic Distribution and Habitat –
Bromelia balansae is a plant native to tropical South America and precisely to an area that includes Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Bolivia and Paraguay.
Its habitat is that of semi-arid areas together with other xerophytes, where it grows at altitudes between about 50 meters and 900 metres.

Description –
Bromelia balansae is an evergreen, pineapple-like herbaceous species that grows up to 2 meters tall when in flower.
It is a monocarpic, acaulescent plant, formed by a rosette of numerous linear, rigid leaves, with a green color on the upper side and grey-green on the lower side; the leaves are up to 1,5 m long and 3 cm broad, thinned and with a long thorn at the apex; the margins of the leaves are equipped with robust sharp and curved spines 5 mm long.
Before flowering the central leaves take on a bright cinnabar red colour.
The floral scape is produced in the center of the rosette; this is short and robust, and is covered by a dense white tomentum and by bracts similar to the leaves, of a brilliant cinnabar red colour, and ends in a compound inflorescence; the inflorescence is formed by several spikes which branch off from a central axis, almost cylindrical, with a diameter of about 9 cm and a length of 18-20 cm, made up of bracts bent backwards, ranging in color from pink to red, bordered by robust spines and with a thick white tomentum at the base.
These bracts have a length that decreases towards the apex until the upper ones are shorter than the flowers.
The flowers are 4-5 cm long; they have petals, of a violet color edged in white, about 2.5 cm long.
After fecundation, ovoid-shaped fruits are formed, of a green color which becomes yellow-orange when ripe; the fruits have a diameter of 2 cm and a length of about 4.5 cm; they are edible.
The fruits have numerous flat seeds, 5 mm wide, and of a blackish colour.

Cultivation –
Bromelia balansae is a perennial, evergreen plant which often produces dense colonies which are spread by underground stolons.
The plant is harvested from the wild for its fiber, which is mainly used locally. There is no doubt that with suitable machinery, the preparation of this fiber could become a commercial industry in the countries where it is grown, especially in Argentina.
They are plants that do not tolerate frost very much, showing damage to the leaves at temperatures of -2°C and withstanding minimum temperatures down to -9°C.
For this reason it is suitable to be cultivated in semi-arid tropical and subtropical climates and also in the Mediterranean type, in full sun and on soils that are also poor, but particularly draining, being subject to rottenness due to water stagnation, especially in the presence of low temperatures.
This plant can be reproduced by seed, by division and by the robust underground stolons it produces.
It is the most commonly grown bromeliad and can be used as a fence due to its large and rapid growth. It grows in full sun and is best suited for growing outdoors.

Customs and Traditions –
Bromelia balansae is a plant known by various common names, including: heart of flame (English); caraguatá, gravatá, gravatá-de-Balansa (Portuguese); caraguatá, chaguar, macambira (Spanish); bromeliads (German).
Despite the decorative inflorescence, it is a relatively little cultivated species due to the dimensions and the robust thorns which characterize it, so much as to be utilized, in particular in the areas of origin, for forming effective defensive barriers.
Its ideal location, from an ornamental point of view, is in large stony and arid gardens where its location must in any case be carefully cared for, possibly arranging suitable obstacles to limit its expansion, given that the mature plants tiller quickly and spread out, through the long underground stolons, managing to colonize large spaces.
This plant is used in the areas of origin for food use.
In these areas the fruits are locally consumed as they are or as juice.
The pulp and juice of the fruit are used in traditional medicine and the robust fibers obtained from the leaves are used to make ropes, baskets and handicraft objects.

Method of Preparation –
Bromelia balansae is a plant used above all in the areas of origin for both food and medicinal use or for other uses.
The fruits are consumed locally both fresh and to obtain juices.
Among other uses, it should be remembered that a soft and silky fiber is obtained from the leaves; this is of medium strength, resembles pineapple fiber (Ananas comosus) and is obtained in lengths of 120 – 180 cm. It is used to produce raw ropes, sacks, etc.

Guido Bissanti

Sources
– Acta Plantarum – Flora of the Italian Regions.
– Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
– GBIF, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
– Useful Tropical Plants Database.
– Conti F., Abbate G., Alessandrini A., Blasi C. (ed.), 2005. An annotated checklist of the Italian vascular flora, Palombi Editore.
– Pignatti S., 1982. Flora of Italy, Edagricole, Bologna.
– Treben M., 2000. Health from the Lord’s Pharmacy, Advice and experiences with medicinal herbs, Ennsthaler Editore.

Photo source:
– https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/64879818/original.jpeg
– https://oxalis.br.fgov.be/images/BR0/000/035/056/164/BR0000035056164.jpg

Attention: The pharmaceutical applications and alimurgical uses are indicated for informational purposes only, they do not in any way represent a medical prescription; we therefore decline all responsibility for their use for curative, aesthetic or food purposes.