Welcome to the spectacular Cochliostema odoratissimum from rain forests around Ecuador.  A green-leafed form of this plant exists, however this one has vibrant magenta leaves!  From the base of the leaves appear wildly beautiful, blue & magenta flowers, which are delightfully fragrant!  This flamboyant purple-leaf form is very hard to find, and i'm glad to finally have it available.

Photo courtesy of SFSU greenhouse

It forms a large rosette of glossy leaves about 3 feet long.  It looks similar to a Bromeliad, but it's actually unrelated (Commelinaceae family).  Both sides of its fleshy leaves are mostly magenta or bright burgundy, with some small streaks of green, which are reduced in bright light.  The plant used to be known as Cochliostema jacobianum, but now it's considered a purple variety of Cochliostema odoratissimum.  Throughout the year it sends out showy flower stalks that are about a foot long.  Each panicle has numerous 2-inch flowers, which are quite complex.  They have bright magenta sepals, and violet-blue petals with frilly hairs.  There's also a tuft of yellow hairs near the center of each flower, presumably to attract pollinators.

Even the fruits are showy!

It is easy to grow when given the right conditions.  It's a tropical species that prefers mild to warm conditions, doing fine in normal household temperatures.  It can tolerate cool nights, but it needs protection from frost.  In the wild it grows as an epiphyte in trees, but it grows fine in a pot in well-draining soil.  Unlike many epiphytes, it doesn't require watering the "tank" of the leaves, since it has a normal root system.  Don't feed it a lot, or it may develop greener leaves.  The leaves get the "purplest" in very bright, filtered light, while deep shade may encourage more green.  I think it will need protection from strong afternoon sun.  It doesn't need direct sun to thrive.  Over about 40% humidity is best for this rain forest plant.