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This summer is BRUTAL

I cannot understand why my plants are so miserable this summer. Last year I had pots of proud sarracenia standing high and feasting. There was a large pot of grocery store rescued VFTs that were nice and happy.

This summer, VFTs are pitiful and many sarrs are very limited in pitcher population. I have them consolidated into plant boxes and most are not pleased. Pitchers are wavy and there is a Dana's Delight from a nursery in town that hasn't had a real pitcher open yet! It is a pot of sarracenia looking grass!

Sundews blacken and neps won't pitcher. This is getting on my nerves.

Anybody else have plants outside struggling more than usual? I'd be curious to see if there are any regional similarities.
 
My plants outside always seem to do the best.

Have you done some troubleshooting as to what may be the problem?

You use good water, you don't fertilize, there's no pests or pathogens, environmental conditions aren't freakish, there's adequate light and air flow?

I'm sure you've gone through it all, but maybe there's a reason things aren't looking too hot. Hope you get things figured out!
 
Fertilizing is safe if you know what you're doing. I fertilize Sarracenia.
 
oops. wrong forum. sorry 'bout that
 
Fertilizing is safe if you know what you're doing. I fertilize Sarracenia.

Well, we're apparently including Drosera in this and they can be pretty finicky about being fertilized. But regardless, if there's a problem and you're fertilizing your plants, that could be it.

And, uh, what forum do you want this in?
 
Hey Clint,

How do you fertilize your Sarracenia?

Do you notice a significant difference in growth rate?
 
I fertilize Drosera too, except D. adelae.

I don't notice a significant increase in growth... because I've been fertilizing for quite some time and once it's part of the routine it becomes the norm and not "Holy crap, what a difference!"

I use half strength orchid fertilizer and foliar feed liberally, but try not to get any on the media. If you do, just flush it and it'll be fine. I don't recommend putting anything in the pitchers if it's able to catch it's own food outdoors (and if it isn't, it should be!). Same with nepenthes, fertilize in the pitchers or feed them bugs, but not both!


With Drosera, mist above them so that the fertilizer collects on the leaves in a way that the mucous droplets are noticeably larger, but don't mist them so that it washes the mucous off. It's really nasty when I do this to D. regia. The leaves curl up in a big.. snotty mess! This technique is really handy for taking pictures! It's the boob-job of the Drosera world.

Once every other week should do it. Or once a month, just whatever.
 
This year has been great for me! Stylidium debile making 15 offshoots, some already flowering, D. ordensis flowering outside in the brutal heat of Wisconsin too and still dewy, D. dichotoma 'giant' made it's first fork since I got it, Sarracenia doing great (my S. leucophylla 'hot pink' hasn't been doing much other than phyllodia though), my Darlingtonia has been GREAT even without top watering, even just repotted it and it didn't stop growing, Dionaea flourishing. You must have a cultivation error or something.
 
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