Date: Wed, 13 Aug 97 22:04 EDT From: dave evans <T442119@RUTADMIN.RUTGERS.EDU> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3103$foo@default> Subject: surpise D. intermedia
Hello All,
This was a private e-mail to Paul Burkhardt, but since it has
some info others might find useful, I didn't want to keep it all to
Paul and myself.
-------------------------Text-of-forwarded-mail--------------------------------
Hi Paul,
> Could you tell me where your "stock" originated from? I like to keep track
> of location data. I have some D. intermedia from the Dutch Mountains,
> Pennsylvania but would like to get some others from different areas.
No, it's mostly from Ocean County, NJ; but I have collected from all
over the east coast. I can't see any reason for labelling the location
data, as all the plants look the same. For this species, I feel data
location data worth keeping would be if the plants were from another
county, like Cuba or somewhere in South America where the climate is
completely different and so then might the plants' needs. Sarracenia
is a different story, as some species are different from state to state
or even from bog to bog in some cases. Same with Pinguicula, the S.E.
USA Pings, are mostly the same and I don't bother with location data.
Mexican and European Pings, however, show amazing variations from
location to location and so I feel the data is worth keeping.
> Yes, live sphagnum is great, especially as topdressing in my opinion. Do
> you grow your sphagnum completely submerged under water, or is it exposed?
> Sometimes I submerge the moss and it doesn't seem to mind. Once in a
> while, what seems like a fungal 'webbing' appears and I have to break it
> up. Ever notice this? I'm not sure if this is from conditions that are too
> wet or too dry. By the way, it's growing in my S. purpurea venosa pot
> outside so there is plenty of air movement.
No, it isn't underwater. That would cause rot, in time. Sometimes,
after long rainy periods, the bogs are kind of flooded, but that lasts
for only a day or two. The secret to killing the fungus off is letting
the soil dry past the fungus' tolerance. Established plants will not
have any problem surviving this. If it stays too wet and damp outside
for long, my bogs get covered with thick mats of fungus. So long as
they "dry out" soon, no plants, not even seedling Drosera that have
almost become buried in the fuzz get harmed by it. When you let a small
pot dry, though, one day or even half a day in hot, sunny weather could
cook your plants so if that's your kinda set-up, take care not to let
the leaves on the plants go past a slight wilt (or not even a wilt, if
the soil surface is dry to the touch, the mycillium is dead) before
resoaking the soil. Also, I feel that letting the pots go from wet to
drier conditions gives you stronger plants, whether fungus is a problem
or not.
Dave Evans
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