Puya raimondii known rather charmingly as ‘Queen of the Andes’1 is the largest member of the Pineapple family (Bromeliaceae)2. As you can see in the picture, it´s certainly enormous compared with me.
The flower spike or the inflorescense is one of the largest in the world, containing hundreds of flowers! Unfortunately this spectacular bromeliad, which is only found in Peru and Bolivia, is considered endangered1 .This is due to climate change and human activities, like cattle farming, for example.
P. raimondii grows at heights of roughly 4000 metres in the Andes. The life cycle of P. raimondii is unusual, being a monocarpic plant, meaning that its dies after flowering. So you may have to wait up to 150 years for the first and last bloom3.
1. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (2013) http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/168358/0
2. Encyclopaedia Britannica (2013) http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/484453/Puya-gigas
3. BBC (2013) http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/gardening_with_children/didyouknow_flowers.shtml
My Wardian Case 