I stopped in Cornell Farm one day recently, it seemed right after they'd gotten a shipment of adorable little 2" pots of tropical carnivorous plants from Carni Flora PDX...
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I selected three: a Drosera spatulata, the spoon-leaved sundew; Drosera capensis, commonly known as the Cape sundew; and Nepenthes alata, a tropical pitcher plant.
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Since constant moisture is key to keeping these plants happy, I potted them up in a few metal pots from the seed starting tray I ordered from Gardener's Supply last September (written about here) and put them on a dish with pebbles. The little pots are open on the bottom, so they can soak up water, plus—since I keep plenty of water in the dish—the humidity is higher for them too.
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Hence the pitchers on the Nepenthes are staying happy and not drying out.
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I love the colors on these plants...
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I was a little bummed to see some of what I thought were insects on the Drosera capensis, were actually just pieces of soil or other debris. I hadn't been able to tell with just my eye, the camera provided a nice close-up. I think at least one of those below is a fruit fly though...or was.
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Isn't it fabulous?
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Also those spatulas!
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Wouldn't it be fabulous of they had a fly-swatter like action when flying creatures buzzed by?
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I wonder if they do sort of close up a bit around an unsuspecting insect? Like a Dionaea muscipula (Venus fly trap) would.
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There's still so much I don't know about this whole group of plants...
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Which is why I finally bought—and have started reading—Carnivorous Plants: Gardening with Extraordinary Botanicals, by Nigel Hewitt-Cooper (from Timber Press). Folks this could get really dangerous...
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Weather Diary, Jan 13: Hi 52, Low 33/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
I selected three: a Drosera spatulata, the spoon-leaved sundew; Drosera capensis, commonly known as the Cape sundew; and Nepenthes alata, a tropical pitcher plant.
Since constant moisture is key to keeping these plants happy, I potted them up in a few metal pots from the seed starting tray I ordered from Gardener's Supply last September (written about here) and put them on a dish with pebbles. The little pots are open on the bottom, so they can soak up water, plus—since I keep plenty of water in the dish—the humidity is higher for them too.
Hence the pitchers on the Nepenthes are staying happy and not drying out.
I love the colors on these plants...
I was a little bummed to see some of what I thought were insects on the Drosera capensis, were actually just pieces of soil or other debris. I hadn't been able to tell with just my eye, the camera provided a nice close-up. I think at least one of those below is a fruit fly though...or was.
Isn't it fabulous?
Also those spatulas!
Wouldn't it be fabulous of they had a fly-swatter like action when flying creatures buzzed by?
I wonder if they do sort of close up a bit around an unsuspecting insect? Like a Dionaea muscipula (Venus fly trap) would.
There's still so much I don't know about this whole group of plants...
Which is why I finally bought—and have started reading—Carnivorous Plants: Gardening with Extraordinary Botanicals, by Nigel Hewitt-Cooper (from Timber Press). Folks this could get really dangerous...
Weather Diary, Jan 13: Hi 52, Low 33/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.