there's been a very satisfactory amount of VFT talk on the list of
late.
On dormancy: I believe that a cold resting period is essential for the
health of a plant in the longer term - I have seen wonderful plants
go all weak, spindly and dead because they were kept in the warm all
winter after winter.
Cultivation: good big pots - I use 1:1 sand:peat, and rain water.
During the winter I do not stand my plants in water. I keep them just
damp - not wet, don't let the air go stagnant. I grow some outside all
year round - frost, snow, hail. The min winter temp here is about -4c.
The plants in the greenhouse stay there. The only exceptions being
rooted cuttings taken late in the season. I let them grow in doors thru
the winter.
I certainly wouldn't chop off the roots and leaves and put them in
the fridge. If I did they'd end up in the frying pan!
I have posted messages about the growth form of VFTs this year. I
recently returned from a vacation and discovered that I had left the
plug in the paddling pool in which I keep my pots of outdoor CPs.
There had been heavy rain in my absence - and the pool filled (2ft)
and the polystyrene boxes containing Darlingtonia, and Barry-Sarrs
were floating about. My VFTs were lying at the bottom and I gather
couild have been there for up to a month. These are the more spindly
upright and not very red plants I have mentioned in past postings.
But after their subaquatic adventure the plants have completly changed:
The new traps are very much bigger, bright red inside, and each plant
has achieved the robustness of some of the other specimens I have.
It is possible the flooding is unrelated to this change - it might
have hapened anyway. Another clone of these plants not submerged
retained its original form. It got me thinking that there might be
VFT types more adapted to wetter and drier locations in their range.
This might be a type that grows wild in areas prone to prolonged
flooding, whilst other plants might grow better where the sandy
nature of good VFT soil prevents this.
Just some thoughts. Perhaps someone who has seen them in the
wild might can say if some plants are flooded occasionally and how
they are affected.
keep warm
Seosamh
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Seosamh mac Carthaigh phone: +353 91 524411 x3070
Seirbhisi Riomhaireachta e-mail: seos@ucg.ie
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