Epiphytic Tillandsia species receive water and nutrients directly from the air through foliar trichomes.For this reason,they can be selected to carry out monitoring environmental pollution.Tillandsia brachycaulos was selected as the materials and cultivated with different Pb(NO₃)₂ solutions (0～100 mg/L).All T.brachycaulos remained alive after 15 days,and the total concentration of Pb in plants increased significantly with the increase of Pb concentration.Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) analysis showed Pb was detected on each type of cells in foliar trichomes,but the ratio of Pb in the internal disc cells was higher than those in ring cells and wing cells.The results suggested that the plants of T.brachycaulos were able to survive under relatively high Pb stress,and accumulated Pb quickly and effectively.Therefore,they had high potential for monitoring in Pb polluted environment.Foliar trichomes of T.brachycaulos were probably the main structure in enriching heavy metals,while the mechanism of adsorbing heavy metals in Tillandsia had an active component.