Re: Question re: N. madagascariensis

From: Chris Teichreb (cjteichr@sfu.ca)
Date: Wed Jun 23 1999 - 14:24:12 PDT


Date: Wed, 23 Jun 1999 14:24:12 -0700 (PDT)
From: Chris Teichreb <cjteichr@sfu.ca>
To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com
Message-Id: <aabcdefg2298$foo@default>
Subject: Re: Question re: N. madagascariensis

Hi Will,

> Hey Listmembers!
>
> I've got a N. madagascariensis that I want to repot. There are two
> growing points, but I'm not sure if they are two separate plants or if
> it is one plant. What is the preferred medium for this species?

        N.madagscariensis is a very robust species. It's tolerant of
pretty much any open, freely draining media. The mix I'm currently using
for my neps, as suggested by an advanced grower, is 1:2:2:1 sand:long
fibred sphagnum (live or dead):orchid bark:perlite or pumice or lava rock.
Put on a top dressing of live sphagnum, if you have it, to indicate when
it needs rewatering.

> Also,
> if there is only one plant, would it hurt it if I divided the growing
> points?

        Divide? Do you mean take a cutting of one of the growing points?
If so, if you only cut off one, then you've still got the other to keep on
growing. As long as there's about two or three leaves on the cutting, it
should do fine.

> Finally, I saw a N. madagascariensis in a local nursery that
> was red (the entire plant). Is this some kind of morph or has it just
> been exposed to lots of light? Any information will be greatly
> appreciated.

        Could be either. During spring, a lot of my Drosera, regular
Dionaea, and neps develop deep reddish colouring, but gradually lose it
over the summer period. Best as I can figure, they're responding to the
increase in light, and especially UV radiation, by producing anthocyanins
(red pigments). They only do this when exposed to natural sunlight, not
when grown under fluorescent bulbs.

> Thanks,
> Will
> wgorum@softdisk.com
>

Happy growing,

Chris



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