Re: 10 gallon tank of CP

Clarke Brunt (clarke@brunt.demon.co.uk)
Thu, 4 Jan 1996 20:36:34 +0000

On 3 Jan 96 at 7:35, rabbit wrote:

> Right now (excuse me for using the common names) I have in my 10
> gal. 1 butterwort, 5 VFT, 1 sundew, 2 pitcher plants (not sure what), and
> something which looks a bit like the other pitcher plants but is red.
> The questions I have are these:
> 1) I know that CP need a dormant period of less water and light.
> Are these plants far to different to be placed under the same dormant
> conditions?

Your plants sound fairly similar (though perhaps depends what species
the butterwort and sundews are). Any cool temperature above freezing
would probably do. In my climate in the UK, I don't do anything
special - natural Winter in a slightly heated greenhouse seems about
right.

I should say that the plants don't really need to be in an enclosure
as long as the humidity isn't too low. Mine just stand with their
pots in water trays,

> 2) I bought my pitcher plants from peter pauls (both the same
> kind, both came as roots) and one developed 3 smallish pitchers while the
> other shot up about 8 inches with what i thought were leaves but actually
> were very thin long pitchers. Is this right?

The pitches *are* the leaves, though some Sarracenia occasionally produce
one or two non-pitcher flat leaves.

> 3) My plants are sitting in about 2.5 inches of soggy peat
> moss. Is that enough for the VFT or are their roots in danger of rotting?

Sounds like it should be deeper - both the VFT and the Sarrs have
quite large root systems. My biggest Sarracenia is in a 10 inch/25 cm
(both wide and deep) pot. Rot shouldn't really be a worry.

-- 
Clarke Brunt (clarke@brunt.demon.co.uk)