Deformed leuco

[Cynic81]

As recently as early july, my Leuco x Willissi has been putting up deformed pitchers. They look normal coming up, growing straigh for a few inches, but then they just start to twist and curl on themselves. The little proto-pitchers on the ends of the leaves never develop. The leaves are still alive, they aren't browning or anything, but they won't grow into full fledged pitchers. Now, I wouldn't be concerned if it was just 1 or two leaves doing this, but every leaf put up since about june-july has deformed in the manner described. The plant is still in the pot and soil it came in from PFT (got it in april), and is being watered with distilled on the tray method, and is being grown in full sun in SW VA. The only abberation worth noting is that in mid-may, I tried to give it some milk. As the pitchers were still quite small, I OD'd it and killed all three open pitchers (Still in the process of dying

I've learned my lesson). COuld this be contributing to my plant's mutation? WIll it survive? What can I do to return it to normal?

 

[Alvin Meister]

They sound like phyllodia to me, which are abortive pitchers designed for photosynthesis. Leucophylla produces them in summer normally but if it goes on for a long time it can be a sign of stress. You sound like you are doing everything right (apart from the milk

), so if you just leave them they should be ok.
Leucophylla produces it's main crop of pitchers around September, so I assume this hybrid is similar.

 

[Stimson]

In my opionion, it could be one of three things.

The first is shock. I have plants that have gone through a full years worth of shock after I have purchased them and brought them into a new environment.

The second posibility is what I call "nutrient overdose." My friend who grows carnivorous plants likes to remind me of one time when I decided to water my plants with barrel water. The water had collected for a year with a lot of decaying plant matter, thus increasing the nitrogen levels in the water. After I watered my plants with this water, they produced wild curling pitchters, due to what we think was too much nutrients. These plants were not used to having these levels of nutrients in the soils. I lost all but one plant from this "barrel water" episode. Your problem could be the result of adding the milk to the pitchers. If you added too much, it is possible, the same result. Now, I could be totally wrong about this, but your description is similar to the pitchers mine produced that faitful summer.

The last posbility is who the heck knows whats going on. The reason why I say this is because I have a S. rubra ssp rubra that has produced some wild curly pitchers this year. I also have an S. alata who has done something similar. Not all the pitchers have done this, but many have. Could be the weather, could be the water, could be who the heck knows. Seems like every year one plant goes off the deep end and produces deformed pitchers.

My advise, hang in there and see what happens. And by that, wait to see what kind of growth you get next year. I have found out that sometimes I need to be patient with a plant for three years before I get the desired results. Have fun, and look at things from the long term.

 

[Darcie]

Well, maybe if it had milk it has all the nutrients stored up it needs and figures it will just photosynthesis now.