Date: Mon, 08 Sep 97 19:57 EDT From: dave evans <T442119@RUTADMIN.RUTGERS.EDU> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3445$foo@default> Subject: Re: Dormancy Question
> I have been growing S. Psittacina since early spring (this is the FIRST
> time for me cultivating this particular species). I've read different
> things concerning dormancy for this plant. One book says to submerge the
> entire plant in soft water for the entire winter. Living where I do
> (N.E. Ohio) the whole enchillada would freeze SOLID even inside an
> attached garage. Since this plant grows in a sub-tropical environment
> I'm sure this action would kill the entire rhizome.
Hello Mark,
I'm not sold on the "bottom of the bucket method" yet, but yeah that
is more or less how they are treated by Mother Nature. This method will
kill it if the water becomes stagnant, not the freezing. Last year I
kept an extra large S.psitt. outside in very large pot about two feet
tall and two feet wide with a dish at the bottom which can hold a couple
inches of water, but the soil filled only the bottom third of the pot.
This was protection enough so that the leaves didn't even get any
freezer-burn. The same clone in a neighboring pot with the soil level
at the top still hasn't started growing right again, just some wierd
phyllodia. I trust this method over the "bucket."
> Could someone that has dormancy experience with this species tell me his
> or her "trick" about over-wintering this Sarr.? Any feedback would be
> greatly appreciated!
Please don't stop with N.bical.; there are lots of other Nepenthes
that Canada could use ;)
I don't know! Sometimes I read stuff in books and just shake
my head in wonderment. Anyway, freezing in the winter doesn't kill
any Sarracenia. I'll say it again, YOU CAN LET SARRACENIA FREEZE
THROUGH WINTER!!! (just a trying to drown out some noise from some
authors, not the eyes on the listserver)
Ah, now that I have gotten that off my chest, I must clarify:
Freezing weather does a number on any plants that are left unprotected
in pots. It doesn't matter how cold hardy they are, nor whether they
are Sarracenia or not. Something has to protect them from the much
greater temperture changes. Just placing the pots in the nich between
the back step and the chimny was protection for 90% survival last
winter while three feet away where the wind cuts across the lawn I had
100% death in all of those pots.
A cold frame, unheated garage or attic, why even greenhouses are
great places to winter Sarracenia. Just make sure the pots don't come
close to drying out. Yes, you water them less often (it's not as hot
and unless you have dry air moving over your ice, the water tends to
stay put, moreso than in warmer times.), but the soil needs to be kept
at just about the same wettness level as what you have in active growth.
Frozen peatmoss and dry peatmoss look the same, so water if you can't
tell.
The very best place to keep them would be an inground bog. It's no
bother at all, you just leave them where they grow.
Dave Evans
Northern New Jersey, USA
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