Gardeners in Central Florida enjoy many advantages over their
counterparts around the country; one of them is the huge palette
of plants they can consider for their sub-tropical gardens. A
plant group that is often overlooked is the epiphytes; the
jewels that can make a tropical garden really sparkle! “Epi-
whats?”, you ask? The Latin-based word epiphyte is a scientific
term used to describe plants that don’t grow in soil, but
instead inhabit the branches of trees. “Epi-“ means “upon” and
“-phyte” means “plant”, so an epiphyte is a plant growing upon
something else, typically a tree. How can these plants survive
without having roots in soil? Competition for sunlight on a
tropical forest floor can be fierce, but epiphytes have
anatomical adaptations that allow them to live closer to the
sun, up in the tree canopy. Collecting and storing water is
critical for survival in the treetops, and epiphytes use
adaptations such as leaves that form water tanks, spongy roots,
and fleshy leaves and pseudobulbs to combat dro