A robust plant, growing to 16 x 16 inches in an upright rosette with 1.5 inch wide leaves, dark green with heavy burgundy-black bands. The leaves in the center of the rosette are mostly black. Looks best in a hanging basket or pot or even mounted. One of the lesser known of the several outstanding Aechmea orlandiana hybrids made by bromeliad pioneer Bill Frase of Orlando, Florida. His close friends, Mulford Foster and Julian Nally were both famous in their own right for their early efforts at bringing bromeliads into general cultivation. Bill was among the first to have Aechmea orlandiana after it was discovered in Brazil by his friend Mulford and it quickly became one of his favorites. Bill started reproducing the plant and selecting different clones such as ‘Hayward’ and ‘Pickaninny’ and making crosses too. His hybrid ‘Black Marble’ is a cultivar of orlandiana x ‘Bert’ x fosteriana but records were not accurately kept and the exact sequence of the cross may never be known. Of his various selections, this one is one of the darkest and rarest.
