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Sarracenia burns?

Hey folks! Glad I found this board. About 5 days ago my mother came to visit the grandkids and left me with a few cp's (she works at a nursery on the Oregon coast), specifically a Serracenia(x Judith Lindle) and a vfp. These are the first cf's I've ever actually owned, so I'm not quite sure what to look for as far as warning signs in their health. I've been cruising the forums here and doing plenty of online research to figure out the care, but I still have some specific questions I hope you can answer.

First of all, the plants are tissue cultures from a place in Oregon that specifically grows cp's. However, I can't imagine that they have been put through any sort of dormant period--should I worry about this or just do it next year? The Sarracenia is in a 3" pot with multiple pitchers, the tallest of which is around 7-8". The first night I put the pot in a tall glass vase with gravel and rainwater so that the bottom 1/2" of the pot was beneath the waterline. I put the vase in a south facing window and it got plenty of sun...actually, probably a little too much. The glass really intesified the light and quite a few of the little pitchers seemed to "burn" (shrivel and dry up, turn brownish.) I ditched that idea and have sinced placed the potted plant in a bowl with gravel and rainwater. It seems to be doing fine, but some of the pitcher "lids" still seem to be dry and brittle around the edges.

Am I doing things ok at this point(i.e. is it just a matter of waiting it out and seeing what will happen)?

Thanks!
 
welcome to the forums! what is the nurserys name? i might want to check it out...
yes, that was too much sun, you don't need to put it in a bowl or flower vase, a windowsill will be fine. put the pot in a tray with 1/2 an inch of water, and make sure the humidity is as least 50%. if it's lower, get a spray bottle and spray the plant several times a day. don't let the soil dry out, as this may kill them! once there is no water in the tray fill it upp with another 1/2 inch of water.
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I hope you like the forums, and good luck!
 
Thanks for the advice Spectabilis73--that's pretty much what I figured.  I top the water off in the bowl each morning, not even letting it dry out completely so the soil stays nice and moist.  I'll have to check the humidity around the window during the day--I haven't been spraying since I wasn't sure how much the temperate pitchers needed humidity (from what I understand there is somewhat of a broad range for them?)  

I don't remember the name of the nursery she works at, but it's in Waldport (just south of Newport.)  They were a strictly wholesale operation, but within the last year have opened it up to the public.  They carry all sorts of plants, from the usual to orchids and cp's.  They get their cp's from an operation in Eugene called Cook's Carnivorous Plants: http://www.flytraps.com/
 
cool, I've ordered from cooks.
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Sarracenia can grow in all kinds of temperatures. I grow mine in temps of about 55-70 degrees, but some i grow in my lowland tank (80 dergees) and they seem to better in the lowland tank.
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low humidity can also crisp the top of sarracenia pitchers. The higher the humidity you can give the Sarracenia, the better. the least should be 50%, but even then they might dry out a little...
 
I think humidity is most likely the problem. I have sprayed them a few times today, but the moisture from this evaporates fairly quickly. I have them in regular dinner bowls with water and some gravel--do you think there is too little surface area here to provide any sort of humidity through evaporation? Would it be best to go with larger pans or trays? Nearly all the "caps" are a bit crispy, and one of the larger pitchers seems to be a bit shriveled.

The other factor I'm curious about would be light. The southern facing window I have them in gets extreme direct light when the sun is out in full force--do you think there is a bit of shock in such intense exposure from a somewhat subdued greenhouse, especially from the coast where things have been really overcast for awhile? I also have an eastern facing window that gets steady indirect light all day--would this be enough for them, or should I let them adjust to the south window and attempt to increase the humidity to match the light intensity?

The last question has to do with water for cp's. I've been using collected rainwater. The water around is fairly hard and I'm sure has quite a high mineral content. I've heard that cp's don't appreciate chlorine and chloramines, but also saw mention of shying away from water high in minerals and nutrients. I was thinking of using some water from one of my aquariums--should I stay away from this as well and stick to the stripped down distilled water?

Thanks for the help!

Thanks for the help!
 
hi, and welcome to the forums! Im curious what kind of Sarracenia it could be, tell me, what are the colors on the Saracenia, and what kind of shape? Are they tall and skinny? Or sort of low and ground hugging? Are they the kind that has an over lapping lid? Thanks,
Kevin
 
yes, that should work for humidity. Keep spraying the plants as well. yes, a eastern window is much better than a south-eastern window. DO NOT use hard water whatsoever! minerals can kill cps fast!
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yes, you should switch to distilled, don't use aquarium water either. If you have any more questions just ask here.
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Hope I could help-
-Spec
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sarracenialuver,

The third sentence of the first post, says S.'Judith Hindle'
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This is an upright plant.

skylsdale,

I use 1 gallon black standard nursery pots or deep white pots for my sarrs. The soil mix should be 50% peat, 25% silica sand, and 25% perlite. A 1:1 mix of peat and sand, or peat and perlite can also work well. Give the plant full sun all day(the old pitcher might dry a bit, but the new pitchers will be colorful and healthy). Humidity has never been a problem for me. Here in Southern CA, the humidity is never high(right now it is around 30%). Keep distilled or rainwater on the tray during the growing season.
 
</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">yes, a eastern window is much better than a south-eastern window. [/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>

The two windows face directly south and directly east. Should I still go with the eastern window that has more indirect light, rather than the southern facing one with a lot of direct light?
 
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skylsdale,

Go with the sunniest place in the house. Even with the southern window, I do not believe the plant will get enough sun. Sarrs are not shade loving plants. Even with 6 hours of direct sun during the fall, my Sarracenia flava var. cutthroat showed elongated growth. If you live in Or, these plants can be grown outdoors year-round(with some protection in the winter).

Spectabilis73,

An eastern window receives less sun than a southern or western window during the spring and summer. In the winter, the eastern window often receives the most sun. Eastern window= morning sun.
 
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