Oh not again! Darlingtonia revisited

MR DEAN A COOK (SESS58A@prodigy.com)
Fri, 5 Jul 1996 22:03:25, -0500

Chris, I would think that the plant may have gotten overheated during
the day if in direct sunlight and once they start to go and brown up
it is almost impossible to get them to perk up. However I have seen
some of these plants in cultivation growing in direct sun with the
greenhouse temperature in the upper 90's if not hotter the evening
temperatures normally go down into the 40's and 50's regularly, but
the plants were planted in whiskey barrells in an even mix of
peatmoss and perlite. The top of the media was covered with live
sphagnum and the humidity was close to saturated. This doesn't follow
the known rules but has worked. I believe the sphagnum works as a
heat sink, dispersing the heat away from the plants. Some of these
plants were close to the mature size as well. I use a peatmoss and
perlite or pumice mixture for my plants, this allows for the roots to
travel much easier. I also keep the plants underneath the benches in
the greenhouse where the sunlight is gotten in the late evening and I
keep them in watering trays with about an inch of well water. I have
used the peatmoss and sand mixture before, but found that it
sometimes gets a little too compact for the roots and isn't ever the
same mix due to the tendancy of the sand to sink after mixing it and
watering it a few times. I have also had some problems with weevil
grubs around the base first thing in the spring eating their first
meal. I am by no means an expert on these plants but can only give
information as to what I have seen done and what has worked for me.
Hope this helps and doesn't turn into debate.
Dean