Darlingtonia experiment

[Ozzy]

A few weeks ago I came up with an idea that I think will keep the roots cool on Darlingtonias in almost any weather. I bought a cheap $3 stryofoam cooler. It's aprx. 2 ft long x 1 foot wide and 2 ft deep.  I punched small drain holes in the bottom. Filled it up with soil and planted the darlingtonia in it. Then I dug a hole big enough for the whole cooler to fit in. I dug it a little deeper so that it will have a small area that the water can drain from the cooler. I filled up the the small area with perlite, Then I set the cooler down in the hole. Our soil here is mostly clay, so I filled in around the cooler with the clay. I then took the cooler top, punched a hole big enough for the plant, then placed it upside down over the plant. Then I put soil over the top. So the plant is totally encased in this cooler except for where the traps grow out. I think this will even keep the roots warm in the winter.
I placed this in an area that get morning sun and bright shade the rest of the day.

I've had this idea for a while but I didn't plan on trying it for a while. But thanks to Nickhubbel for giving me the darlingtonia yesterday, I'm going to try it and see if it works.

Has anybody ever tried this or does anybody see any potential problems?

I'll keep everyone up to date on this.

 

[sarracenialuver]

It seems fine to me. Sounds like a gret idea! I think I may use that when I build my bog garden next spring

! Thanks,
Kevin

Oh, keep us updated!

 

[technoracer]

i thought you we're going to use distilled ice cubes in this experiment?

(by the way, when i got home last night, my cobra lilly was totally uprooted again, lfs all over the driveway. i'm bringing this plant back indoors. tired of repotting it everyday&#33

peace,
technoracer

 

[Ozzy]

Well on hot days I plan to freeze some water and turn it upside down ofer the plants so it'll drip cold water on it. But I may not even need to do that judgeing by how cold the clay was when I dug the hole. I'll see how that goes when summer gets here.

Sounds like it's time to try that bb gun idea you had. Or you could get a cat that loves to murder birds.

 

[FlytrapGurl]

Don't be shooting birds!!! Find some other way to repel them!

 

[Ozzy]

Techno, remeber what I told you about the squirrel war. Looks like we're starting a bird war.

 

[NickHubbell]

Here is my idea for keeping the roots cool. The Darlingtonia are potted or planted directly into a large bog container. The container has a hole cut in the side about 1/2 way down to allow a hose to be inserted. This hose will act as a return water line. On the other side of the container, either a higher hole is made for a water supply line, or the hose is simply placed over the side of the container. Under the table is container that will hold several gallons of water. This will be the water supply. A pump will then be used to circulate the water into the bog. As cooler water is pumped to the surface of the bog, the warmer water will be drained through the hose on the opposite end of the bog container. All the workings under the table should be enclosed with some sort of curtain. This will help keep the water supply cool.

 

[Ozzy]

I read in Don Schnell's book Carnivorous plants ot the United States and Canada, aeration may be more important than temperature.
Heat to the roots will kill this plant but it can tolerate higher temps if there is running water, But it will produce smaller and fewers pitchers.
I like your idea, I'm sure it will work.
I'm trying to find a cheap and low maintance way to grow them. Your idea is really nice because you won't have to water them evey day like I'm going to have to do with mine.

 

[steveo]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (0zzy @ May 26 2003,02:16)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I read in Don Schnell's book Carnivorous plants ot the United States and Canada, aeration may be more important than temperature.
Heat to the roots will kill this plant but it can tolerate higher temps if there is running water, But it will produce smaller and fewers pitchers.
I like your idea, I'm sure it will work.
I'm trying to find a cheap and low maintance way to grow them.  Your idea is really nice because you won't have to water them evey day like I'm going to have to do with mine.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Here is an easy and cheapish setup.

I am aerating a pot with a darling using an aquarium pump.  the pot is glazed and quite thick-walled.  Since it is undrained, I water infrequently--maybe once every two weeks.

The pot is topped with dry perlite--about an inch.  This has proven more than enough insulation against the direct sunlight that hits the top of the pot.  The heat just does not penetrate all that trapped air.

It is working very well, I suppose, in that the plant seems to be doing fine.

I think Schnell's theory about aeration is OK--my setup is based on it--but Schnell's frequent cold watering and attendant sudden temperature change is going to shock the plant.  Mechanical aeration is better than drenching, to my mind, because the temp stays constant.  

I know for a fact that ice will kill the darling if it gets too close.

Steve

 

[steveo]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (0zzy @ May 25 2003,9:08)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">A few weeks ago I came up with an idea that I think will keep the roots cool on Darlingtonias in almost any weather. I bought a cheap $3 stryofoam cooler. It's aprx. 2 ft long x 1 foot wide and 2 ft deep.  I punched small drain holes in the bottom. Filled it up with soil and planted the darlingtonia in it. Then I dug a hole big enough for the whole cooler to fit in. I dug it a little deeper so that it will have a small area that the water can drain from the cooler. I filled up the the small area with perlite, Then I set the cooler down in the hole. Our soil here is mostly clay, so I filled in around the cooler with the clay. I then took the cooler top, punched a hole big enough for the plant, then placed it upside down over the plant. Then I put soil over the top. So the plant is totally encased in this cooler except for where the traps grow out. I think this will even keep the roots warm in the winter.
I placed this in an area that get morning sun and bright shade the rest of the day.

I've had this idea for a while but I didn't plan on trying it for a while. But thanks to Nickhubbel for giving me the darlingtonia yesterday, I'm going to try it and see if it works.

Has anybody ever tried this or does anybody see any potential problems?

I'll keep everyone up to date on this.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Ozzy--what are you going to do about runners?

Steve

 

[Ozzy]

Runners?

I really haven't thought much about that. I've just planted it, and it's in a big cooler so it has plenty of room to grow. I can check pretty often for runners, all I have to do is to pick up the lid of the cooler and if I find any I can modify the top of the cooler to let the runner grow.

 

[FlytrapGurl]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (0zzy @ May 26 2003,12:43)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Techno, remeber what I told you about the squirrel war. Looks like we're starting a bird war.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
I don't want to start a war with anybody. All I'm saying is this: Would you shoot... say... kids with a bb gun when they tresspass in your yard?

 

[Ozzy]

Personally I wouldn't shoot a bird, I think I would build something to keep the birds out.
Please don't ask me the same about the kids. After what I had to go through last summer, I don't think I would make the "correct" decision.

 

[FlytrapGurl]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (0zzy @ May 28 2003,02:40)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Personally I wouldn't shoot a bird, I think I would build something to keep the birds out.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Good

 

[Ozzy]

So does this mean that I have your support in shooting the kids?

 

[Phil traper2]

The system and the ex. looks like a hot tube system.lol. I think that is a great I idea. I am going to try o put the pot into a big water tray and into a portable cooler of ice.

 

[steveo]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (0zzy @ May 28 2003,03:07)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Runners?

I really haven't thought much about that. I've just planted it, and it's in a big cooler so it has plenty of room to grow. I can check pretty often for runners, all I have to do is to pick up the lid of the cooler and if I find any I can modify the top of the cooler to let the runner grow.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Then the only other issue I can think of is condensation/fungus.

Steve

 

[RamPuppy]

I generally don't have to worry about it. So far this year, my mom and dad (where all my gardens are out on our ranch) have had 4 armadillos, 2 squirrels, 3 jackrabbits, and even a grackle laid reverently on their doorstep by the dogs, who sit and wait until someone comes out and pets them on the head and gives'em an 'atta-boy' for protecting the family's crops. heck, our new puppy, Daisy, which I am currently very unhappy with for being a pest herself, has taken to eating grasshoppers in her spare time... so she is proving to be, as cyrus the virus said, 'a very useful mammal.'.

But regardless, open and shut case, people have the right to deal with pests as they see fit, and comparing a child to an animal with a brain the size of a jelly bean is quite invalid. So, while we all love animals and so on and so forth, everyone has the right, within the law, to do as they see fit, and no one here has the right to tell someone what to and what not to do... something to think about.

 

[Pyro]

I am going to be a stick in the mud and tell you all that I think you are going into way too much effort for your Darlings. I live in Atlanta and grow my Darlings outside year round on my patio with no real special treatment. My media is LFSerlite top dressed with live sphag, I potted the plants in 7" white clay pots and stuck them in old dog bowls. I keep 2-3" of water in the dog bowl and every couple days I go out and suck some water out of the tray and squirt it around the crown of the plant to drain through the pot. I guess this could meet with Schnell's theory about aeration, personally I think it is just the occasional flow of water that makes the difference. It is nice, simple, easy and takes a minimum of effort.

Just my thoughts though

 

[gardenofeden]

I agree with Pyro, I grow my darlingtonias just like Sarracenia but with a top dressing of sphagnum, and they grow like weeds!.

ps whats a grackle?