This rare member of the Bromeliaceae family commonly known as Bailey’s ball moss or giant ball moss, is an epiphytic perennial that forms large, rounded clusters reaching more than 12 inches in diameter. The plant features distinctive gray or silver foliage, with older leaves eventually turning brown as they age. It establishes itself on host trees, showing a strong preference for the shaded canopy offered by Texas ebony and live oaks, though it can occur on other tree species in established, undisturbed systems and has occasionally been noted to grow in full sun.

During the spring and summer, it produces indeterminate, greenish to rose-colored flowering bracts that extend prominently beyond the mass of the foliage. In the spring, these bracts yield tubular violet flowers. Within Texas, this epiphyte is restricted to far South Texas and is most common in Cameron County, where it inhabits native oak and ebony forests and thickets. While it can be locally common within these specialized pockets, Tillandsia baileyi is currently listed as a species of concern due to the ongoing threats of urbanization, habitat destruction, and its overall limited distribution in the state.