Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Mouse-Tail Air Plant (Tillandsia myosura)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Mouse-Tail Air Plant, Myosura Air Plant.

More about mouse-tail air plant

About Mouse-Tail Air Plant

Tillandsia myosura · also called Mouse-Tail Air Plant, Myosura Air Plant · tropical

Tillandsia myosura is a slender, xeric air plant native to the arid scrublands near Córdoba, Argentina, and extending into Bolivia and Paraguay, where it endures pronounced drought periods. Its thin, ribbed, slightly succulent leaves curve sinuously — giving it the 'mouse-tail' name — and it clumps readily into dense mats. The single most important care fact is that it is highly drought-tolerant and should be watered only every one to two weeks; overwatering is the primary cause of failure with this species. Tillandsia is listed as non-toxic to cats and dogs by the ASPCA.

Cold limit: USDA 10-12 (indoor in most climates) · RHS H1b (5–35°C)

Watch for — Leaf tips yellowing and shrivelling: Paradoxically, even xeric species can dry out too much in centrally heated homes in winter; if leaf tips yellow and curl despite normal watering, increase misting to once a week during the heated season.

What mouse-tail air plant's hardiness rating actually means

Mouse-Tail Air Plant is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1b means: Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10-12 (indoor in most climates) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 10 °C (sustained cold below this is damaging). Mouse-Tail Air Plant has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for mouse-tail air plant as it gets too cold:

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can mouse-tail air plant go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when mouse-tail air plant can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1b figure above.

Mouse-Tail Air Plant hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is mouse-tail air plant cold hardy?

Mouse-Tail Air Plant is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Mouse-Tail Air Plant can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10-12 (indoor in most climates)); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature mouse-tail air plant can survive?

What hardiness zone is mouse-tail air plant?

Mouse-Tail Air Plant is rated USDA 10-12 (indoor in most climates) and RHS H1b — Sub-tropical — a normal warm home is fine, but it cannot go outside in a cool season.

Can mouse-tail air plant survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above 10 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to mouse-tail air plant below its minimum temperature?

Below about about 10 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.