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Sarracenia liles

There are several websites marketing identical products. There is so much that can be said about the ads on this website, but I will let the page speak for it's self. Imagine the pleasant aroma of... digesting insects.
Um... no, I am not an employee of the Flower Depot trying to land some more business.

http://www.tfdepot.com/search.itml?icQuery=sarracenia

I emailed the company and asked about their unique liles... no response yet.
-Trevor
 
It’s the beautiful things that always go first.
I bet they dont give a darn about the plant even if there were only a few individuals left.

I mean come on, its not even a FLOWER
Thats false advertising, not to mention morally wrong.
 
tfdepot@aol.com if you want to shoot them a line yourself. Just try not to be too presumptuous or hot-headed. I know some of us can get a tad impassioned at times.

I have recieved no reply yet. I may contact some of the OTHER companies out there (just search for "sarracenia lily").
http://www.earthlypursuits.net/Merchan....de=SARR
I am drawing MINIMAL conclusions about Flower Depot's practices (or a related supplier). However, to me the odds that they have a greenhouse full of Leucs growing pitchers to be harvested once, maybe twice per plant, per season is more far fetched than the idea of a bunch of wankers trapsing around a bog, collecting pitchers. The latter seems as though it would yield more product than the greehouse method.
However, anything is possible.
Even if there are legit harvesters using private land (which could theoretically be considered a form of propagation?) there is no guarantee that they do not enlist people to collect further specimens from the wild -this might just be the paranoid side of me.

Here is an exerpt from the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service International Affairs: Sarracenia spp. and natural hybrids:
It appears that at least two out of the six major harvesters cut from       private or leased land, including bogs that have been augmented with species whose       distribution ranges do not naturally extend to these areas. However, the majority of       pitchers still appear to be cut from wild populations and concern has been voiced over the       long-term effect of harvesting on these populations and habitats (Groves 1993).

Feel free to cite this, or more importantly read it yourself:
http://international.fws.gov/animals/sarracen.html
TONS of info on that page related to cut pitcher sales

-trevor
 
You can call too, if you're interested.

LaForge, Steve (UAPMILGRHI) tfdepot@aol.com
The Flower Depot
725 Lanning Rd
PO Box 654
Tonganoxie, KS 66086
US
913-845-2099

I really hope they aren't poached.
sad.gif
 
After reading the USFWS article referenced in my previous post, I searched out one of the referred writings:
"Examination of the US Pitcher-plant Trade With a focus on the White-topped Pitcher-plant:"
By C.S. Robbins

There's some interesting stuff in there, along with pictures of harversters doin their stuff
http://www.traffic.org/bulleti....de.html

"

A retail company in the State of Maine contacted by TRAFFIC offered dried wreaths decorated with Sarracenia in its 1995 Christmas catalogue (identified by TRAFFIC as being White-topped Pitchers). The company informed TRAFFIC that it has purchased wreaths from a local floral manufacturer which, in turn, claimed to have bought an unknown quantity of dried Sarracenia from Company A in Alabama; these specimens are all believed to have been wild-collected. Based on the number of pitchers used per wreath and the total number of wreaths produced, it is estimated that at least 45 000 dried Sarracenia pitchers were purchased for wreaths sold in 1995. This retail company no longer offers the wreaths for sale.
 
This really sucks , i'm going to try to instant message the company whenever there online and ask them a few questions , obviously their poached .
 
There is a very well known leuco site in Alabama that produces these pitchers for the floral industry. Although pitcher harvest probably has a detrimental effect to the plant, there have been benefits also. The mentioned site is being properly managed to encourage growth of the leucos. After years of not being burned the site was finally burned. The burn turned a struggling site into a fantastic site.
I've seen too many sites where the land is considered more valuable as a gas station, rather than a bog. I'm for any excuse that'll make people consider protecting these sites.

imduff
 
From some of the reading I have done, there are about five or so companies that "farm" pitcher plants. I hope it is one of the ~2 that farm pitchers on private land. An article I read said that five of the companies were contacted, but only two replied, so I obviously don't know if the others harvest from wild or not. However, the reading I have done indicates that yes, there are companies that use their own land. There is also a decent amount of tissue culture of leuc's in Amsterdam for this perpose.
Although I fully support the preservation of pitcher habitat even for the farming of the pitchers (much better than simply destroying the land in favor of a gas station).

The odds are still in favor of wild collection, though.
The US Fish and Wildlife article that I read indicates that harvesting of cut flowers from the wild is arguably the biggest threat to these plants.

The Flower Depot responded to my second email. Nothing too interesting, though.
>Our Sarracenia lilies come from several sources, so I cannot >give the origin. 15 is the smallest bunch we have.
>
>Thanks
>The Depot
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Nepenthe @ Feb. 10 2004,06:32)]The US Fish and Wildlife article that I read indicates that harvesting of cut flowers from the wild is arguably the biggest threat to these plants.
I'd like to read the article. Does the article indicate that the flowers are used for the cut flower industry or removed for their seed?
This is the first time I've ever heard that flower removal is even a threat to wild populations. It doesn't seem realistic to me that complete obliteration of pitcher plant habitat isn't a greater threat. Certainly populations can continue to exist simply by growth and division.
imduff
 
  • #10
Possibly a little mis-communication on my part. What I was referring to was the harvesting of cut *pitchers*
I have seen nothing that says that the harvesting of flowers for floral arrangements is even happening (on a problem basis... I suppose a few may be taken from the wild...)

You can read the summary by the US Fish and Wildlife service here:
http://international.fws.gov/animals/sarracen.html
This is a link to an article cited by the USFWS in their summary, lots of good info.
http://www.traffic.org/bulleti....de.html
 
  • #11
Habitat preservation isn't going to save many S. Leucophyllas.  There isn't enough money in symathetic hands to buy much land, even swampland, and the current trend of federal or state wetland preservation isn't promising.  Commercial propagation can eliminate a lot of plant poaching, especially if vigilant CP enthusiasts keep an eye out for improper sales on eBay, etc.  An income generated by a sustainable harvest of S. leucophylla pitchers would probably preserve more than anything we can do.  But, unfortunately, it could lead to the selective culling of plants with "less desirable" pitchers and, of course, to the loss of other Sarracenias.  I'd hate to see a diverse assemblage of Sarracenias replaced by a monoculture of the most garish leucs, but it might beat the alternative.
 
  • #12
That seems to be a two-way street...

On one hand you have the legit harvesting companies that operate off of their private land. These companies arguably are doing little to destroy populations of pitcher plants aside from "influencing" others to collect from the wild and share in the profits. So yeah, they are not that bad, depending on how you look at it.

On the other hand, you have those who harvest cut pitchers from the wild. This action is said to be more detrimental to the population of Sarracenia (or a number of plants in the bog, for that reason) not because of the removal of pitchers or wild plants, but because of the excess wear on the habitat that the collectors inflict via foot and ATV traffic.

It would be mighty spiffy if those harvesting companies donated some of their profits to the Nature Conservancy or what have you -maybe they do? I don't know.

It's a pretty difficult issue... which poison would you choose?
I'll shut up now
 
  • #13
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Nepenthe @ Feb. 11 2004,21:12)]Possibly a little mis-communication on my part. What I was referring to was the harvesting of cut *pitchers*
A common misconception among non-CPers, is that the pitcher is a "flower". It is used as a flower in many floral arrangements as much for it's beauty as its unique shape and coloring.

smile.gif

BCK
 
  • #14
There is one book Gardening With Carnivores: Sarracenia Pitcher Plants in Cultivation & in the Wild by Nick Romanowski that talks about cut pitcher production. If I has the money and the land to build artificial bogs of several acres, it would be a very profitable business. Drawbacks are planting hybrids near natural stands, planting in existing bogs, etc. I do hope these pitchers are cultivated and not wild collected. However, it is still a large practice to wild collect pitchers for sale to the floral industry. This is done on private or least land as already stated. It also most likely occurs on lands not released for the purpose. If only one or two pitchers are removed a year from a plant, it would not have a huge impact on the plants survival. However, it is suggested that many suppliers strip the entire plant which will be detrimental.

The book I mentioned is a good one for a peak into the world of cut pitcher production. In the long run, cut pitchers will help save at least some of the taller, and more colorful Sarracenia and their hybrids. It could also mean the end of many others in the wild due to changing laws that remove protection from other areas.
 
  • #15
I wonder if my local library would have that book. It sounds interesting, I'll have to check it out.
Thanks for the info&the reference!
-T
 
  • #16
I thought I saw some on Ebay lately, being sold as cut flowers. I'll check....
 
  • #17
I found it. I'm thinking it's the same company, based on the seller's ID. I like how they say they're related to Jack-In-The-Pulpits. What morons!

here's the link:
Sarracenia lilies on Ebay
 
  • #18
Yeah, I like that Jack-in-the-Pulpit remark as well.
*sigh*
That's like saying a Mack Truck and a Ford Taurus are related because they both have wheels
 
  • #19
Has anyone informed them that these are not flowers? I am so tempted to send them a message saying that they are actually Sarracenia leaves and are in no way a flower.
 
  • #20
You can go ahead and do that if you want to. Personally, I have not done so. I thought about it, but I doubt pointing out the inaccuracy will have any impact, though.

It's still false advertising, so I wonder if maybe someone should say SOMETHING to them. ?
 
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