What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Carnivorous passiflora!

I am attempting to get cuttings started from work of P. foetida var "arizonica" I took 4 cuttings. Hopefully they all root.
 
awesome! I cant believe how dewey it is!
 
I did not read the article however, many plants produce sticky glands as a defense against insects or for other various reasons. This does not make them carnivorous.

Tony
 
Yeah, but this one is better than geraniums! I like passiflora anyway

its a pic, nothing you have to read.
Its a nice pic too!
 
Oh my goodness!That's so cool! It looks like there's a cherry in the middle
smile_n_32.gif
Is it carnivorous??*Trapper7*
 
I know! Its awesome! Some people say its carnivorous, others dont.
 
It's NOT carnivorous. Who says it is? I don't know anyone that says it is.
 
  • #10
Only one species, Passiflora foetida, is thought to be a potentially carnivorous plant. When the plant flowers, it makes glandular bracts. Digestive enzymes have been found inside the plant's tissues, but not on the bract surfaces

that is a qutoe from the FAQ. It is quasi carnivorous
 
  • #11
wheres the actual FAQ? do you have a link we can see?
 
  • #14
it is in the quasi carnivorous section
 
  • #15
I have read Barry's FAQ. However you called it carnivorous. It is potentially Quasi carnivorous, but even that is uncertain. Quasi carnivorous is not carnivorous. There is a difference and a plant must meet a certain set of deffinitions to be classed as carnivorous. That's all I mean..

Also from Barry's FAQ
"A plant is carnivorous if it attracts, captures, and kills animal life forms. It must also digest and absorb the nutrients from the prey to qualify as a carnivorous plant."

Tony
 
  • #16
Hey Guys! I am sorry to tell you this, but Passiflora foetida grows in the wild here in Puerto Rico. It is normal to see them filled with fruits in our forests and valleys. Here is called "Tagua" and it is not only beautiful, but the fruits are delicious!

This is very interesting, I did not know it was suspected to be "quasi carnivorous". I have seen thons of glued insects on its flowers and fruits bracks, but I thought it was only bad-luck.

Before anyone ask, I cannot take any of them, nor a cutting, they are endangered here in PR and obviously are protected by federal law.

See you...
 
  • #18
Tony is absolutely right. The passiflora is not a true CP. One of the "rules" with CP is that the traps are never the flowers. Traps are always vegetative. This makes sense if you think about it. If you were a plant and your flowers were carnivorous you would have no way to spread your genes to another individual. You would trap all your pollinators.

Now, I know that some of you may have examples of plants (like orchids for example) that trap insects for a period of time as part of the pollination process. This, of course , is not carnivory. Attract, trap, digest. Many flowers attract and trap insects, but with out digestion, it’s not a true CP.

Steve
 
  • #20
The most recent studies on P. foetida (the goat-scented passionflower) determined the plant is NOT carnivorous. Although it has sticky bracts around the flowers, the plant does not benefit nutritionally from the insects entrapped in them. The bract may serve another purpose for the plant but it is not carnivorous.

However, that does not take away from the beauty of P. foetida and the interesting bracts. As far as I know, it is the only passiflora with such bracts.

And Sunpitcher...please remember, that just because you "read it on the internet" doesn't make it true. Plant research and studies are on-going all the time and data is constantly being revised. But sometimes it takes people a while to update their website and some people never do. I have seen that FAQ too but its also been there for years and years so its older information. The newest info says...not carnivorous.
 
Back
Top