CP
Don (dngess01)
Tue, 3 Mar 92 23:04:40 -0500
Nepenthes and watering:
I grow all my Nepenthes in peat/perlite. I wouldn't advise letting them
sit in water. If the humidity is high, it shouldn't need watering more than
once a week. If they still dry out too fast, try adding more peat moss
the next time you pot the plants. If the soil looks waterlogged at any time,
I would repot immediately and put more perlite in the mixture. It's hard to
find just the right ratio to give a soil that is neither too wet or too dry.
Even for Drosera, my opinion is that letting them sit in water is more a
convenience to the grower. All plants like plenty of oxygen in the soil and
near the roots, and too much water drives the oxygen out. It may be ok
if the water the plants are sitting in is refilled often with fresh water,
but if the evaporation rate is low, the water will get stagnant . The smell
is from anaerobic bacteria I seem to recall - that is bacteria that grows
in absence of oxygen.
Robert, it is ok now to send the seeds and D. falconeri any time. Try
sending them near the beginning of the week so they won't sit someplace
all day Sunday. Temperatures have been in the 70's for several days now.
Barry, what kinds of Nepenthes does Marston sell? Any discounts for spending
over a certain amount? I wouldn't mind buying a Heliamphora. We could get
together for another mass purchase.