Sarracenia spring pitchers - why are mine always so ugly!?

[Devon]

Every spring, my Sarracenia put up a bunch of pitchers, but they're always really green and don't show many of the plants' characteristics. My Sarracenia only start to actually look good when fall comes! For example, last year my purp venosa made some really nice red compact pitchers, but this spring it made long, small hooded, lighter coloured pitchers. And my S. x 'scarlett belle' made really tall spindly green pitchers this spring.

Is this normal? I'm convinced that it is not normal, because I've sen enough pictures of Sarrs with gorgeous spring pitchers. I can provide photos if needed.

Thanks!

 

[GregNY]

I'd like to see some pictures either way! Your photography is awesome.

Doesn't fluctuations in weather temperature / lighting / and even soil moisture have a cause and effect to pitcher development?

And different species look better at different times of the season. What species do you have other than the purp??

 

[Devon]

I'd like to see some pictures either way! Your photography is awesome.

Doesn't fluctuations in weather temperature / lighting / and even soil moisture have a cause and effect to pitcher development?

And different species look better at different times of the season. What species do you have other than the purp??

Haha, thanks!!

I guess it would. Perhaps the stress of re-potting every spring too could have something to do with it...

I have a hybrid called "susan frost", flava, oreophila, scarlette belle, 2 different catesbaei clones, hummer's hammerhead, formosa AF, and rosea f. lutea. Only the flavas look good for me in the spring, and one of the catesbaei.

Another thing is that my sarracenia take an entire growing season to look good if I just get them... For example, last year I got a flava rugelii that made a few crappy pitchers, but this spring it looks pretty good with about 6 pitchers. I hope I explained that correctly.

I'll get some pics right now. I'll have them up in an hour or so. (They won't be good pics though. )

Thanks for the quick reply!

---------- Post added at 11:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:07 AM ----------

nevermind about this pics for now; my computer isn't working properly. I'll have to wait until my dad gets home to fix it for me.

 

[denverone]

mine do the same thing in the spring except the flava. I am not sure if it is that certain species do better at different times or that fact I have to repot mine as I have seen others around the same time that look better. Also we have had a really cool spring and early summer in fact know it is just getting to the 80s and 90's.

 

[Exo]

Certain species make better pitchers at different times of the year....for example, flava makes nicer spring pitchers, while rubra makes better fall pitchers. Every species has it's time of the year when it looks best.

 

[Steve Booth]

Hi Devon

Repotting evey spring wont help as the plants can easily go into a sulk which can take twelve months or more to come out of, so they wont look their best or colour up terribly well. Also what are your lighting conditions like, a shortage of direct sunlight or only partial direct sunlight will have a big effect on the colouration.
All the best
Steve

 

[Brokken]

Generally, the spring pitchers should be the tallest and showiest of the season except when dealing with leuco and its hybrids. It is possible that given your yard configuration, your plants get more sun in the fall and less so in the spring. This could be causing the spindly growth.

 

[jurow]

Are you growing the plants outdoors (or with only natural sunlight)? If so, this is pretty much what I would expect in Ottawa. Your photoperiod and temperature are quite low early in the growing season, so comparing your spring pitchers to plants grown in Florida, for example, may lead you to think something's wrong.

Later in the season, you actually get longer days than we do at lower latitudes, so it also makes sense that your plants start to catch back up.

Let me know if I'm on the wrong track.