A few weeks ago I came up with an idea that I think will keep the roots cool on Darlingtonias in almost any weather. I bought a cheap $3 stryofoam cooler. It's aprx. 2 ft long x 1 foot wide and 2 ft deep. I punched small drain holes in the bottom. Filled it up with soil and planted the darlingtonia in it. Then I dug a hole big enough for the whole cooler to fit in. I dug it a little deeper so that it will have a small area that the water can drain from the cooler. I filled up the the small area with perlite, Then I set the cooler down in the hole. Our soil here is mostly clay, so I filled in around the cooler with the clay. I then took the cooler top, punched a hole big enough for the plant, then placed it upside down over the plant. Then I put soil over the top. So the plant is totally encased in this cooler except for where the traps grow out. I think this will even keep the roots warm in the winter.
I placed this in an area that get morning sun and bright shade the rest of the day.
I've had this idea for a while but I didn't plan on trying it for a while. But thanks to Nickhubbel for giving me the darlingtonia yesterday, I'm going to try it and see if it works.
Has anybody ever tried this or does anybody see any potential problems?
I'll keep everyone up to date on this.
I placed this in an area that get morning sun and bright shade the rest of the day.
I've had this idea for a while but I didn't plan on trying it for a while. But thanks to Nickhubbel for giving me the darlingtonia yesterday, I'm going to try it and see if it works.
Has anybody ever tried this or does anybody see any potential problems?
I'll keep everyone up to date on this.