Vriesea goniorachis is a bromeliad that is typically adapted to its cliff habitat, not only by its coriaceous dark gray to sometimes violaceous leaves but also by its spreading to pendent inflorescence. It is very common on the nearly vertical rock walls of the peaks of Rio de Janeiro such as Pao de Acucar (Sugarloaf), Leme, Canta Gallo, Dois Irmaos, Pedra da Gavea, Corcovado, Pico de Tijuca, Pico do Papagaio, etc.
The flowers are nocturnal, opening a throat unusually large (27 mm) for a flower that is only 40 mm long and exhaling an odor of onion. They bloom at nightfall and close at dawn.
The present paper is for the better knowledge of this endemic of the Rio de Janeiro area by rectifying its basic description and clarifying its morphological characters of great taxonomic significance.
The deformation caused at the time of pressing and drying the type specimeny- Glaziou 15471, led Baker to omit from his original description the important character of secund (all turned to one side) flowers shown in the photos published here. They are rare but there also exist plants with a 2-5-branched inflorescence. However, the great majority have a simple inflorescence like that of Glaziou 15471 which Baker used for his type.
The presence of this plant is constant in Rio de Janeiro on the numerous bare rock faces at 10 to 1000 meters altitude where it is exposed to the blistering rays of the full sun.
In cultivation, in bromeliarios and rock gardens, it is not beautiful as an isolated plant but has a pleasing mass appearance when many specimens are grouped in a continuous formation. —SeeReitz 1974p. 1974
