Date: Mon, 11 Aug 97 17:45:22 -0800 From: Ken Cusson <kenc@salinas.net> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3056$foo@default> Subject: Re: Miscellaneous Ramblings.......
>Question: Do these plants \221generate\222 their own liquid for the
>pitchers, or
>do they rely on rainwater, etc., in their natural habitats? I keep my plants
>indoors, and only take them out occasionally. When looking at the pitchers
>with backlighting, I can detect numerous carcasses in the base of the
>pitchers, but I can\222t seem to detect any \221water-line\222 for the
>digestive
>liquid. If there is no liquid, I assume these trapped insects are not
>actually doing the plants any good. Could (i.e. \221should) I add a little
>distilled water to assist the plant in the digestion of its trapped prey?
>
In his 2nd book, Slack mentions that he feels the hoods on S. flava (and
most of the other tall Sarracenias) are designed to keep rain water out
of the pitcher. He, therefore, does not recommend adding water. However,
I have noticed that some of the pitchers tend to turn brown very easily
at the spot where the carcases begin ... perhaps a little water might not
hurt ...
Slack does recommend adding water to S. purpurea as the plant seems to be
well-designed to collect rain water.
>And finally, I think I\222ve gotten my mother hooked on CP. Almost every
>time we
>spoke over the last few weeks, she would ask me how my plants were doing,
>etc., and would mention that she was looking for a VFT. Last week she told me
>that she found a garden center near them (S. California), Armstrong\222s (?),
>that sold CP. She purchased two pitcher plants. They were from Booman Floral.
>One was labeled \223Sarracenia\224, but the other had no label. In
>describing it,
>she says that the pitchers are \223very short, and almost as wide as they are
>tall\224. (Heliamphora?!?!) I asked her to take a photo ASAP and send it
>to me.
>I should have it by the end of this week. If they turn out to be
>\221good\222 I\222m
>going to have her bring a few along when they come to visit in a few weeks.
>
I would be quite amazed if they were Heliamphora ... probably hybrid of
some sort. I have purchased a number of CP from Armstrong's Nursery
Centers in So. Calif, and they are still (after 3-4 years) some of my
favorite plants. They are usually very healthy and well-taken-care-of by
Armstrong's workers (all except for some Darlingtonias (not from Booman)
that seemed to be wild-collected).
KenC
Ken Cusson
kenc@salinas.net
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