Date: Thu, 25 Sep 1997 17:07:32 -0400 From: BREWER_CHARLES@ecomail.damneck.navy.mil To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3711$foo@default> Subject: Re: Sarr Growth
This time of year I start my fall clean up of all my plants. Fall cleaning means
I go through every plant and remove any non functioning pitchers, including
pitchers that have fallen. I only allow upright pitchers to stay. I did noticed
that most of my plants were sending up nice tall colorful pitchers or have
recently done so. Regarding S. Leucophylla, they are at their peak right now. I
usually get two growth out of them, one in the spring and the other just before
fall or just into fall. My S. Rubra Gulfensis, Wherryii, Jonesii and ssp. Rubra
are all in full pitcher. They are at their best. My S. Oreo (for the most part)
has finished for the year. Most adult plants have formed their phyllodia leaves.
A few small Oreo plants still have a few active pitchers, but they will soon be
sending up phyllodia leaves. This also depends on the age of the plant. No real
noticeable difference in my S. Psitts. These plants seem to look the same day
after day. I think they grow a new pitcher at night when I am sleeping. Another
plant that has recently sent up some impressive pitchers are the S Alatas. There
pitchers are close to three feet high now and catching bugs like crazy. I don't
have the best luck with S. Minors. They seem to be the same spring, summer and
fall. My S. Flavas are half in half, otherwards half of them are dormant while
the other half are sending up, what looks to be, their last good pitchers.
I did notice some new pitcher growth in my Cephs. They are producing more
pitchers then leaves now. I do admit I just divides them up a month ago and
transplanted them in new media and planted them under grow lights. They were
growing outside in semi shade sun light. Re potting plants in new soil seems to
encourages new growth, so it's hard to really say for sure what caused them to
start growing again. The Cephs that I did not divide, seem to be increasing
their pitcher size.
I'm going to go out on the limb on this statement and I stand to be corrected,
but watching my plants over the past ten years or so, I will say this. I noticed
that all Sarr plants go through a rapid growth in the spring. They send up
flower spikes and pitchers. This growth usually slows down when the weather
starts to get hot, around June/July. I still see pitcher growth, but nothing
major. More like replacement pitchers. The next noticeable growth starts around
middle or late August. This is when Rubra, Leuco, Alata start sending up their
best tall pitchers. Flavas are usually done with and are sending up their winter
like leaves. I think most Sarrs react to hot weather by slowing down their
growth. I think that if I were able to keep their rhizomes cooler, I might be
able to get better growth out of them in hotter weather. I feel that tall
grasses and other vegetation that grow around, not over, these plants plays a
major role in their survival. It may be very hot in Florida in July/August, but
the soil that these plants grow in is a lot cooler then the air temperature.
Regarding my Cephs, I seem to get better quality pitchers in the fall/winter
months then in the hotter months of summer. Our humidity in Va. Beach, Va. runs
on an average of 60 percent or higher all year long. Higher in the summer, a
little lower in the fall. If our humidity drops to 35 percent, it makes the
news. As for our temperatures, we have mild winters and hot summers.
Temperatures run as high as 100 degrees or higher.
Charles Brewer
Va Beach, Va
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