Epiphyte, EHP uh fyt, also called air plant, is any plant that grows on another plant but manufactures its own food. Most plants send roots into the soil and use them to obtain the moisture and chemicals they require for growth. But epiphytes take most of the moisture and raw materials they need for food directly from the air or from plant debris that has accumulated around their roots. Epiphytes have no true underground roots. Some of them receive moisture from the air through their leaves. Others have fleshy roots that dangle in the air to extract moisture from it.