D. aliciae

[larry]

Does D. aliciae turn red when given enough sun? *Right now it has an odd color, can't tell if its dying or happy. *Its kinda brownish red up top, some leaves on the bottom are still green. *It was taken out of tissue culture 2 weeks ago. *I have several clumps growing in a pot. *

[chris]

im not familiar with the d. aliciae but tell this;

is the plant dewy?

thats how i usually can tell if my sundews are healthy, rather than by color...

im sure one of the gang will have more info to offer...good luck.

ps: are those fast growers? and do they keep in the same environment as d. adelae?

[CP2k]

D.aliciae can turn reddish under a good amount of light.
They are very easy to cultivate.

As for its growth rate, it is a fast grower. My plants prefer more light than my D.adelaes for good growth and coloration.

[CP2k]

Forgot to mention...tissue cultured plants need time to adjust to full sun since they are grown with relatively low light and receive nutrients from the TC medium.

Larry,
How much humidity is the D.aliciae receiving? TC plants are grown under ~100% humidity. The aliciae should be kept under very high humidity after removal from flask. The humidity has to be slowly lowered over the coarse of a few weeks, while the lighting has to be increased over a period of a few weeks as they no longer receive nutrients from the TC media. Rushing this process can cause plants to brown or dry.

[larry]

No, there's no dew on the leaves, and I don't expect the current leaves to produce any. It hasn't grown any new leaves yet. I have the plants under a dome(top part of a juice bottle) with some holes drilled at the top, so humidity is high, and so is the temperature. I keep these under the patio, most of the time. Only on the weekends are they out in full sun for most of the day.
Do plants fresh out of TC tend to grow slowly at first? I have some vft's from tc, and they are also slow growing. CP2k, I got the aliciae and the vfts from Ed Read, if that helps.

[CP2k]

I believe the main problem is with the temperature. Leaving an aliciae out in full sun under a dome can cook the plant as the dome magnifies the heat. It would be best to keep the aliciae in a terrarium under growlights.

As for the flytrap, I believe that Ed may have already grown these plants outdoors. If you received the plant in a pot and not bag than the plant can be grown outdoors in full sun without a cup covering the pot.
I grow my Red Dragon flytraps outdoors in an 8in pot.
They do not mind the low humidity and some are even starting to produce flowering buds, which I plan to cut off as it drains the plant of valuable energy.

Plants fresh out of TC grows slower than when they were in TC. They may grow slower until they adapt to the new conditions.

[imported_cephalotus88]

D.aliciae is an easy rossetted drosera from south africa. The tenticles will turn red under good light. I have mine in a potted terrarium under natural light. they produce alot of young plants from root, so it willl be surronded by babies when an adult. keepeing a dome over em will provide needed humidty. if you recently got the palnts via shipping, dont expect the older leaves to produce dew. wait till newer leaves pop up. good luck-Zach

[larry]

CP2k,
I have a dome on it, but it has very good ventilation since I drilled several large holes on the cap of the dome. I check it often, it never gets very hot, just nice and humid. Both the aliciae and vft's were directly from tissue culture. The plants were still in the containers, growing in that agar mixed. I washed the agar stuff off and planted them. I hope they make it.

[CP2k]

Good luck;) as this is the most crucial period of their survival.

[larry]

Good news to report! *I checked on them and all the clumps have new leaves forming http://www.**********.com/iBhtml/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif