TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk
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I stopped using those seed-starter peat pellet thingies.........
I found that they were filled with mold and fungus spores. The damp-off killed every seedling that sprouted. There was always this fast growing solid green mold like The Blob or something....
Not matter how much sulfer-based anti-fungal spray I used or how much ventilation I gave a tray, damp-off would always occur. I even microwaved the pelets first too. Still no good.
Good luck dude. I hope you have a better experience with them than I did.
I would strongly advise against perlite..
there is no need for it, and its messy and ugly.
I know nepenthes growers are into perlite lately, and maybe it has some benefit there,
(keeping an "open airy" potting mix and all that)
but for drosera, dionea and sarracenia I see no reason for using perlite.
lol scotty I guess it's like a 75/25 mix around here. 75% of the people like to use perlite in everything, while the others don't.
I received a shipment of dews and planted them all without perlite. After a week or more of getting hassled to get perlite I finally found a store stocking it.
But needless to say someday when I have enough plants I'm going to put one in a mix and one in straight peat and see how they compare. Cause I been getting such mixed reviews on the substrates.
There's nothing wrong with using perlite. Aside from stretching a non-renewable resource (peat) it improves drainage. This can be helpful with novices who probably have a tendency to overwater until they get a feel of what moisture levels work best.
Messiness is not a problem, just gently press the perlite down if it floats up when watering. A repetition or two of this sets the perlite in place. A little surface drying between watering while "setting" the perlite helps facilitate the process.
You can always put a 1/4 inch top mulch of sand on top too. This keeps down moss growth and fungus gnats if you don't have a liking for either.
The biggest drawback I find with perlite is it's lightness. My Sarracenia pots constantly blow over in the wind. However this can be a plus if you ship plants potted as it saves substantially on weight.
Yes I got my nep clipping in a perlite/water mixture. Mainly to keep them standing up straight. My nep was on it's way out so I figured it's time to try a salvage.
I don't even think Capensis needs that kind of germination conditions. I just knock the seeds into pots and let them grow. But it is good practice for harder germinating plants.
If you are somewhere where they sell cinder it is even better if you mix in some cinder..
I like perlite but it does float... Capensis does not need any good conditions like 40F minimum with some light.(happened to me)
What you do is stop worrying so much. It's D. capensis. Whenever they need transplanting, just throw whatever extra crap you've got laying around in a pot and it's good to go.
Heh. When I did all my repotting with perlite. I took every single clipping whether it was half brown or all brown and stuck them all in a big bin with 1/4 inch of peat/perlite on top. There is so many clippings it's crazy. I put at least 10 still green adelae leaves in there. Just about some of every plant I own.
I'm hoping they all sprout something. I saw a pic this guy had one adelae leaf with 6 new sproutlets on it. I sure hope mine do that. I also added some star moss in there to fill in the blank spots until I can get some live LFS.
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