Why?

[Copper]

Hello,


I had two very different drosera die rapidly, actually overnight.

My Manni and Venusta both died. They were both growing very slowly for months. Today I checked on my plants and they are brown and show no signs of life. The venusta bothers me the most because it was from seed. I had two come up. The first died and disappeared with in a few weeks. At least I think it died because there was no sign of it.

These two plants were kept with my other drosera which are doing very well and are flowering. They are all being watered by the tray method.

ideas?

 

[PlantAKiss]

Hi Copper

I'm moving this topic to the 'dew forum where it might get more specialized attention.

*POOF*

 

[cephalotus88]

a number of factors could lead to the demise of your dews. Please tell us your growing conditions. Were they young plants? Did you water it enough/too much? Light levels, etc

 

[Copper]

My sundew are in a 30 gallon tank, covered with glass. It has ventilation. Humidity is kept at approximately 70%, temp at approximately 75 degrees. There are two banks of two 40 watt bulbs above. Two of the bulbs are cool white, intermixed with two full spectrum. There are more than 40 other drosera in there that are doing very well.

The venusta was only a couple of months old, from seed. The manni came from a trade about the same time the venusta came up. I have other plants that came up from seed at that time that are doing spectacular, so I do not believe that something was introduced into the tank with the trade. I am hoping this is an isolated incident. Do the venusta and manni have anything in common, besides being a drosera I mean

 

[Copper]

oopps, I water using the tray method. I do not keep the water very deep, about half an inch or a little better. The soil is soggy, but not soaked. I does not have the appearence of root rot.

Confusing

 

[CP2k]

Venusta is from S.Africa, while mannii is from S.Australia. Pygmy dews like mannii tend not to grow too well in terrariums. Probably has something to do with the high humidity and lack of air circulation in most terrariums.

 

[cephalotus88]

yes, i agree. Pygmy drosera grow very close to the soil, thus humidity if not such a big deal.

 

[Tamlin Dawnstar]

I think it is likely to be the heat build up that might have been the problem. D. mannii is a summer sensitive species which needs to be in deep pots so that the surface can be nearly dry during the hot months when the plant goes dormant while the roots still can find some moisture deep in the pot. Likely the medium was too wet, and the air circulation too low. It is a rather finicky plant.

D. venusta also dies back as a survival strategy to get through the hot weather, often returning from the roots during the cooler months. I advise that you not give up on either of these species even if they appear quite dead, just try to keep the meduim barely moist and hope for the best.

 

[CP2k]

I have some D.mannii that are growing outdoors in a 7in pot. The temperatures average in the low-mid 80's, but the plants are still growing.
Most of the pygmy sp. that I cultivate prefer a soil mix with excellent drainage. I have some pycnoblasta that are still growing during the summer. The mix for this sp. is composed mostly of perlite.

 

[Tamlin Dawnstar]

I am impressed that you have D. pyncoblasta still growing, and thanks for the tip. I always seem to lose this one over the summer and was planning on trying this season with pure laterite, but the pearlite sounds like a good alternative. Most of the "summer sensitive" species are found in lateritic soils in habitat so it makes sense that they would appreciate an airy mix.

 

[CP2k]

Hey Tamlin,

So far the pycnoblasta are the only pygmy dews that I have in this mix(probably around 70-80% perlite), but I will try a couple more difficult sp. in this mix in the winter. The pycnoblasta that I have in my peat:sanderlite 2:1:1 have been dormant for more than a month at this time.

 

[Copper]

Ah, I use a heavy sand and perilite mix (with peat)(1:1:1) for my Utrics. I wonder if this would be beneficial for my dews as well.