Re: Nepenthes liquid

Steve Hilles (hilles@igc.apc.org)
Mon, 16 Sep 1996 23:39:18 -0400

Greetings to all from a new subscriber. I've followed with interest the
recent discussion of Nepenthes liquid. I've been growing a N. alata for
about one year. This spring it began to form over 10 new pitchers after I
began feeding fresh insects on a regular basis. When I first got the
plant, the pitchers swiftly died off to the "half dead" stage while I
acclimated the plant to my growing conditions. Even though the pitchers
were half dead, they seem to have been able to process the fresh insects,
since I haven't fed it anything else in the way of food. I plan on keeping
any half dead ones on in the future. Just as with orchids - don't cut off
live tissue (except for propagation!).

So far, I've been adding water to the pitchers to keep them filled, as well
as watering the slatted 8" cedar basket that it is planted in. In addition
to the bugs I catch, the Nepenthes has been catching many (3-4 per pitcher)
yellowjackets in its summer spot outside my front door. The rainwater seems
to be very beneficial too.

I was intrigued by the way that the pitchers filled with 2-3 cc of liquid
_before_ they opened. Does Nepenthes draw water from the pitchers in
drought conditions? Or does it only derive nutrients from the pitchers? My
speculation is that Nepenthes (mine anyway) tries to maintain a sort of
fluid balance between the leaves, roots, pitchers, and growing tips,
drawing water from wherever it can.

Is it ok to add water to the young pitchers, or should I let the liquid
that appears do its work first?

Thanks for your comments,

Steve Hilles...Hilles@igc.apc.org.....Hampton Bays, NY U.S.A.