Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 08:40:51 -0500 From: "Susan Farrington" <sfarrington@ridgway.mobot.org> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg1949$foo@default> Subject: Re: Darlingtonia and heat
Interesting observation, Jeff... like you, I grow my Darlingtonia in wide
pots: when I had 8 tiny seedlings (quarter sized), I had them in a 6"
azalea pot, with live sphagnum on top. They were moved the next
year, several seedlings to a 6" pot. Now, three years later, they are
occupying two large wide pots, about 14" wide. I have always used
live sphagnum, which I think really helps. I've also kept the pots in
white styrofoam boxes, snugly fit in a hole in the lid, so their roots are
inside the white cool box, with cool water below. Mine, unlike Jeff's,
do NOT sit in the water... but the cool water below keeps the box
cool for the most part. Susan
> This subject has long been something of an enigma to me. I live not
> far from native habitats of this plant, yet have been just as
> successful killing it as people who live in much hotter climates. My
> failures have always been when I've grown Darlingtonia in vertical or
> square pots.
>
> The technique that seems to be finally working is to grow them in low,
> wide pots with a live sphagnum top dressing. I would say to use no
> less than a 12" pot. They should also have a water tray underneath
> them. My best guess as to why this works is that this kind of set-up
> produces a large surface area for evaporation which gives some
> cooling. (By low/wide pots I'm referring to the same type used to pot
> up collections of annuals by large nurseries.) This type of pot also
> does not allow sun to hit the sides very directly. All the better if
> the pots are white also. Like others have said, cool water on hot
> days is a very good idea.
>
> Jeff
> Portland, OR
>
Susan Farrington
Missouri Botanical Garden
P.O. Box 299
St. Louis MO 63166-0299
susan.farrington@mobot.org
(314)577-9402
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