The plant appears on page 250 of La Belgique Horticole in 1885 where it is given a name. "Bi11bergia nutans was fertilized by B. baraquiniana and is well known under the name of B. Windi (note the one "i"). It was obtained from MM Jacob-Makoy at Liege."
My next reference is from the German Gartenflora in 1889 in an article by L.Wittmack where Billbergia 'Windii' is described from a drawing (currently at Kew Gardens) by Edouard Morren. Note that Billbergia "baraquiniana" eventually became Billbergia decora.
 Billbergia 'Windii' Gartenflora, 1889 |
 Billbergia 'Windii' inflorescence Gartenflora, 1889 |
 Billbergia 'Windii' flower Gartenflora, 1889 |
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Let us now move to more recent times when, in 1955, Charles Hodgson of Melbourne, Australia, sent a plant called Billbergia "meadii" to the Adelaide Botanical Gardens. Shortly afterwards, a botanical painting was done of this plant.Where did Charles Hodgson get his plant? The investigation moves to the USA because this was where Charles Hodgson got most of his plants. He was a regular contributor to the BROMELIAD SOCIETY BULLETIN in the early 1960's.
In the BROMELIAD SOCIETY BULLETIN, May/June 1956, page 47 we read, "For many years E.O. Orpet exchanged seeds with Theodore Mead of Florida and he introduced into California Billbergia X Meadii which is one of the favorite billbergias of western growers."
In the BROMELIAD SOCIETY BULLETIN 1962, page 71, Giridilian mentioned the hybrid Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead' but gave no parentage.
Victoria Padilla in her book Bromeliads published in 1973, mentions and describes Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead' on page 124 but not Billbergia 'Meadii'. On the same page she described Billbergia 'Windii' indicating that she believed them to be different. However, I am not sure whether she was conversant with the plant because the photograph on page 125 originated in Czechoslovakia. Her description of Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead' is as follows. "A very popular hybrid with long-lasting inflorescence that blooms several times a year. A medium-sized plant with spreading, soft-green leaves. The dropping inflorescence has large rose bracts and blue and green flowers."
At about the same time that Padilla's book was published, the editor of the Australian BROMELETTER Nov/Dec) 1972, Olwen Ferris wrote, "B. 'Theodore L. Mead' (often sold as B. "meadii") has a large drooping inflorescence and pots of this hybrid need to stand above bench level. It also makes a good subject for hanging baskets. Low spreading, soft-green leaves make a foil for the very large rose bracts and the blue and green flowers. Established colonies flower as each tube matures and not at any set time."
It would seem that both people were talking about the same plant and it would appear that 'Theodore L. Mead' and "meadii" refer to the same plant.
However, there is no apparent link between Billbergia X Windii and B. 'Theodore L. Mead' although they seem very similar. Theodore Mead reputedly hybridized widely and was fond of Billbergia nutans as a parent, but he did not keep records, and only bequeathed problems. It is possible that he was successful with pollen from one of the Helicoidea group when he sent seed to E.O. Orpet. Alas, we will never know.
What we do know is that David Barry Jr in his trip to Europe (BROMELIAD SOCIETY BULLETIN 1954, page 55), saw a range of plants not at that time in the U.S.A. We knew he brought back Vriesea X hoelscheriana because it is alive and well in Australia having been imported from David Barry Jr. Did David Barry Jr. also bring back Billbergia X Windii? Mention was made of him seeing this plant in Europe. If he did, then it seems strange that Padilla was not aware of it. I can find no trace that a Billbergia 'Windii' came to Australia via the USA and all our plants seem to link with Billbergia "meadii" and Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead'.
How close is Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead' to Billbergia ' Windii'? I have translated the description of Billbergia 'Windii' made in 1889 and this is as follows. All comments in brackets are based on my plant of Billbergia 'Theodore L. Mead' for comparison purposes:
"Leaves strap shaped, very long to 85 cm [50 cm], narrow, 3.0-3.3 cm wide in middle [4-4.5 cm], the sheath a little wider, gradually tapering to a long tip, edges very weak and very [minutely] spined [1 mm long], spines 1 cm apart [5 mm], stronger toward the tip, pointed toward the front. Leaf blade top side almost smooth, dark green, shiny, [lepidote with barring]; underneath very weakly scaled [lepidote in lines], scarcely indistinct, grey cross-banded [none evident], Inflorescence forming a hanging spike. Scape 70~75 cm long [30 cm]. Scape bracts numerous, inside light rose, outside carmine, longish, lance-like [lower ones green tipped, all heavily lepidote]. Flowers large, 75 mm long [65 mm] to the tip of the stigma. Sepals longish, lance-like, acuminate, to 20 mm long, 5.5~6 mm wide [7 mm], and 7 mm wide at base [5mm], green, edges rose, the tip sky-blue, white farinose. Petals 2 1/2 times longer than the sepals, long-lineal, gradually narrowing to a point, 55 mm long, at anthesis wholly rolled back [not tightly], later straight, blade green, edges blue, 6 mm wide [7 mm], tip 2.5 mm wide. Stamens shorter than the petals, 55 mm long [40 mm], ribbon-like, stiff, parallel, yellow-green. Filaments 45 mm long [30 mm], linear, a little wide at base. Anthers 12 mm long, joined at the lower half in the middle of the back [2 mm from the bottom]. Style longer than the stamens, 62 mm long [46 mm], dark green with spreading, later spiraling, lobes 6.5 mm long [12 mm with a hint of blue]. Ovary thick, long or long-cylindric [oval], incised under the tip, shorter than the sepals, 7 mm diameter in the middle, 5 mm above, ribbed, green.
How significant are these differences? Note that no size is given for the scape bracts but in Morren's line drawing at Kew in the original article in 1889, they are much smaller than those of Billbergia 'Windii' in Padilla's book. Should the old name of Billbergia 'Windii' prevail? After all this research we will never be certain whether Theodore L Mead did hybridise this plant or whether someone got a plant from him where they put "From Theodore L Mead " on the label and promptly forgot the "From"!!
I am surprised that James Giridlian of California is quoted in the Bromeliad Cultivar Registry as having incorrectly named this plant and hence our problem because I have not been able to trace this as a fact. Admittedly I do not have all the references quoted in the BCR but I only miss 1967:36, 1968:75 , and 1969:143 of the BSI journals and the information may be there. Perhaps someone could check for me.
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Meanwhile, working on facts and the written word, not hearsay, we have been able to obtain a photograph via Marco Bleeker of a plant purchased in a Chain store in Belgium. It would stretch the imagination somewhat to think this plant came from the USA. Please do your own checking of the photographs and make up your own mind. Personally I can see both names on labels well into the 21st century!
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Here is a quote from one paragraph of a letter from Mulford Foster to Bill Morris here in Australia.
"28 Oct. 1958- The parentage of Billbergia xmeadii, I believe is B. nutans x B. porteana. However, I have seen more than one hybrid that was sold
under this name. The plant has never been authentically named or described."
Finally, I understand the true Billbergia 'Windii' is getting to the USA in a variegated form from the large Commercial Bromeliad Concerns in Europe. "
Billbergia 'Windii' variegated
Notes by Geoff Lawn. 11/2006
Description and observations are of my specimen stock named as such and imported ex Tropiflora Nursery, Florida in Aug. 2004. After 18 months quarantine in Brisbane and after growing for 10 months under my conditions in Perth, Western Australia, my basket clump seems hardy, untroubled by our coldest, (down to 0 degrees Celsius (32 F)) driest Winter on record, and a prolific pupper once established. Reginald DeRoose (Nov. 2006)advises that their DeRoose Nursery in Belgium reintroduced the plain green B. 'Windii' commercially in the 1980s and it is currently still stocked. Tissue culture there produced the variegated and marginated forms which about 1994 were tissue-cultured themselves but their unstable variegation proved unsuitable for commercial release.
Rosette form: open vase; well-fed older rosettes to 60cms across, but newer unfed inner growth is more compact and broader leaved. Each mature leaf is to 35cm. long and to 30 mm. wide, tapering to a fine point. Fine, brown 1mm. spines pointing outwards (antrorse), evenly spaced the entire leaf blade length, spines generally 5mm. apart in juvenile leaves and 7mm. apart in mature leaves. Variegation in each leaf is mostly in medio-picta form---- broad creamy yellow central stripe mixed with random fine striations, flushed pink in bright light. Tropiflora Nursery reports (Nov. 2006) that their variegated form has sported albo-marginated clones (D. Cathcart-pers. comm.). Leaf texture is slightly glossy on the obverse, lepidote in lines on the reverse. No hint of crossbanding anywhere.
Inflorescence: arching, decurved simple spike, mine as per photo (Oct. 2006) 46cms. long. Lepidote and rose pink scape bracts are each to120mm. long by 16mm. wide. Scape bracts overlap, each irregularly spaced 15mm-40mm. apart, almost enveloping the 9 flowers. Actual inflorescence 12cms. long. Each flower to 65mm. long to stigma tip. Petals green margined dark blue/violet, each 2.5mm-3mm. wide, recoiling but not tightly at anthesis. Once spent, some petals straighten but not all. Sepals acuminate, 5mm. wide at base by 17mm. long. Creamy green, ribbed, ovoid ovaries each to 7mm. wide by 11-12mm. long.
Comments: Derek Butcher's translation of the French text in La Belgique Horticole mentions"hybrids" (plural) in the second paragraph, which indicates more than one clone of the grex was retained. This may explain the description and size differences quoted between the plain green and variegated forms. Furthermore, the German Gartenflora specimen of 1889 pictured appears to have excessively long, "dark green" leaves "to 85cms." and elongated "scape 70-75cms". This suggests the clump grew in lower light, glasshouse conditions (heated?) in northern Europe's climate of the 1880s and possibly was overfed. By comparison, my less vigorous but hard-grown variegated specimens in an open shadehouse in Perth's sunny Mediterranean climate produced more compact growth.