Bromeliad flowers don't last indefinitely. They die back, and the plant will often begin to develop offsets, or 'pups' as they are called. This turn of events signals the dieing back of the mother plant, and the development of the new generation. However, you'll get more meaningful suggestions if you can pinpoint the type of bromeliad you have. Is it one that you are supposed to keep the central vase filled with water? Here is a link that might be useful: Bromediad images

Thanks for the replies... I think saltcedar may have gotten it.. i looked up basket plant and found a close up pic of a runner that looks just like mine... although i think that's just going to lead to more leaves.. if i get flowers i'll post a new pic :) thanks!

Thanks for the info, LisaCLV. I did find on the net later that hechtias don't go down far enough, but nothing definite on the agave range. Dyckias seem to range up to the Andes (at least foothills), but it doesn't seem to go over to the Chilean side, though. Thanks for the other suggestions. I think at the seedlings stage, it's hard to determine the species by appearance until it's matched with the seed appearance too, unless there's some critical feature that is especially different. Two things that really differentiated these guys from the puyas so far (at least considering I only have two puyas) is that the puyas have not formed their spiny margins, but these guys formed them immediately, and the leaves are less succulent than the puyas'. They are rather flat and relatively thin, actually, but not grassy-flat and thin. They are also rather wide (considering the size of a seedling, that is), and lacking in trichomes, as madabouteu describes them. I know it's probably easier to wait until they grow up and show themselves more, but I thought it would be fun to play a bit of twenty questions here and try to see if we can figure it out early. :) I just found it intriguing that the plant world has thrown a weirdness like this at me.

Hi everyone. treelover03 - I have had Guzmanias (especially Guz. 'Hilda') in the house showing good bract colour for almost four months. Although the flowers are short lived, the bracts (the coloured bits that look like small coloured leaves) remain in colour for ages. Most of these mass produced Guzmanias and Vrieseas sold in department stores are sold as alternatives to buying a bunch of flowers. When you think of the cost involved in these versus the flowers, the plants are a much better financial alternative. Once they have finished flowering, they can be put outside (depending on your location) in the garden or in a shade house where they will produce pups which may be separated when large enough, or just allowed to clump up in the original pot or moved into a larger one, as they do look very attractive in a clump. All the best, Nev.