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My one plant of 2004

Due to almost no space left I only let myself get one new plant this year, N. talangensis. It's from Borneo Exotics via Tony, came today and is primo about 5 - 5.5 cm across! Thanks man!
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It has been left in the large wad of shipping moss and simply packed it into a 4" pot with some leftover rapid draining, inorganic bonsai soil mix. Let's see: large sand grit, fine bark, charcoal, maybe some fine lava chips. Should help aproximate a clump of moss on a tree side. I've hung it on my plastic grid like the N. inermis and macfarlanei who seem to love this positioning close to the light, quickly draining, drying
Hopefully I'll have some neat pitcher pictures to show later this winter!

Anyone else have one older than mine, maybe with pics to show off?
 
I got mine today too! Should see some color in the next couple of pitchers, how about you?
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A fine selection Gentlemen!
good luck with it.
Swords, thank's for describing your mounting technique... Don't suppose you have a pic of your new plant mounted?
Thanks,
Robin
 
Not of the new guy (ony a juvenile pitcher or two) but here's how the N. inermis grows and the other currently small epiphytes.
old pics:
inermis2.jpg

inermis3.jpg

latest photo from spring/summer
inermis16.jpg


The inermis is now about a meter long with 2 large basal shoots begining to make intermediates. still in the 4" orchid net pot I started the seedling in (again, from Tony).
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Edit: the soil is kept in the pot by "sewing" some fishing line over the surafce in an "#" pattern with the plant in the middle opening.
the net screening is 1" x 1" plastic poultry netting hanging hook is my friend the jumbo paperclip.
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Hey Josh, have you ever tried using the mesh bags you buy onions/potatos in to grow the ephitic neps?
 
Swords:

What a fantastic idea! I shall immediately copy this creative, space-saving cultivation technique. This kinda reminds me of the main plot component of "Purloined Letter", that is to say, this solution has always been in plain sight for me (I grow some pleurothallids in net pots). I have never grown neps in baskets, but I think my preferred growing medium (equal parts NZ sphagnum, shredded treefern & oak charcoal chips) is water-retentive enough for this to work very well.

Your N. inermis look great. I have one that is just emerging from prolonged juvenile lethargy, and popping these curious-shaped lower pitchers every month or so. Once they get going, they appear to really smoke.

Congrats also on your new acquisition. One of the more elegant and colorful Sumatrans. Had a very small one from Wistuba, promptly killed it - I think we all know the drill...

SJ
 
I personaly use the nylon shade cloth of least shading, I think the openings are like 1/8" and stapled in place. I mount on to wood though. I have been very curious to get inermis or lowii. I currently have 'Judith Finn' but thats not an epiphyte, however it is growing along - not pitchering though. (I know my humidity is too low here, very odd summer here)

Anyway, I await the day when I have so many I must chose carefully. Nice plant to have Josh.

Joe
 
Swords, thanks for the pics, and detailed description ( down to the fishing line technique!).... Very helpfull for those of us with "space" issues
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Robin
 
Sadly I didn't invent growing my neps this way. There was fellow from Israel named Ariel (I think) who used to be on here. He showed off his big terrrarium which was really packed (not an open inch to be found). He was doing something like this and I thought it was a completely great idea, especially for the epiphytes who seem to like their soil on the drier side.
That N. inermis grew very slow for about 6 months, then I knocked the pot off the bench and saw there was almost no root system. It was in pure LFS and kept well watered. I repotted it with 50% LFS and 50% fine bark in this orchid pot and hung it and it's done fantastic ever since with the soil being able to slighty dry up and then be fully saturated in a couple days then "dry up" again... I'm still amazed it's confined to a 4" pot with no root protruding because as you know, those orchid pots are pretty shallow. Now I'm wishing for flowers so I can see what it is!

edit:
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]detailed description
Haven't you learned yet, I'm a windbag! Nobody at work wants to hear about my plants so I gotta come here and unload!
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  • #10
Somebody should try this with N. campanulata. It's a ...lithophyte(sp?), which means it grows on cliffs, and your first pic of inermis kind of looks like the pics of campanulata in the wild.

Cheers,

Joe
 
  • #11
I have had the best luck with lithophytes and transplanting. I would try it but I have no camp. All my lithos sit wedged inbetween rocks with various mediums filled in the pockets between. Anyone know what kind of cliffs? Limestone?

Joe
 
  • #12
I think it is limestone, which does not equate to needing alkaline compost(the soil in the crevices for Neps is always peaty, or broken down whatever).
Could one make a pot out of cement if they wanted to do a limestone setting, or is that completely lethal, lol(w/o years of leaching, at least)?

Cheers,

Joe
 
  • #13
I have heard the same with northiana that it does not need limestone. The question is how well does it tolerate a lime leaching since in the wild lime would leach terribly especially in a humid/wet environment. I am not sure about either of these plants in particular but...in my experience lithophytes are pretty tolerant plant considering that they made the move with all intent to find their own niche in life. We all know how indestructible the common hen and chicks are, they are lithos. The however do not like open moist soil, they need the rock crevice thing going for the healthiest growth.
I myself would not use limestones for crevicing though. I usually use regular old natural rock laying around. Drop the roots in and sprinkle in the soil media until full and lightly pack. Most lithos seem to enjoy sprawling across the rock or dry surfaces in general. You could do the cement planter but the thing I think would be that the roots would probably need to be running down between large chunks and likely very compacted. Plants that naturally grow with compacted roots usually flower easier than other plants and at earlier ages as well. I haven't done any of this with Neps but I have with many others so I kinda make an assumption about them.

Joe
 
  • #14
Thought Ch'ien took some pictures at some point of N. campanulata.. From what I recall they looked like steeply sloped heavily moss covered hills. Deffinately not rock faces with some plants sprinkled in between big boulders and cracks here and there. I am not sure I would consider them lithophytes..
 
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