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Around December I picked up a S. Rubra from Lowe's. It spent a few months living in a terrarium during winter while I was at college. During Spring it was moved to a windowsill for more light. However it was still looking pitiful so I decided to take it home and leave it outside along with all my other CP's for mother nature to take care of it. I didn't let it adjust to the humidity/light but I knew my mom wouldn't take care of it and I live an hour away from home. All my plants did the thing where they die back and look pitiful for a month or so and then come back with vigor... all of them except my S. Rubra. My S. Purpurea is getting huge almost to the point of becoming a weed as are my flytraps. For Christ's sake I scalped my darlingtonia so it was basically the rhizome and roots and it now has 4 fully developed pitchers and about 4 more on the way! However with my rubra I clipped off all the dead pitchers. There are about 2 pitchers 4-5 inches tall but they have seem to have stopped growing. They can't catch insects because they are still in the leaf like stage. They are in a big gallon pot with a 50-50 peat/sand mix. They get full sun in the morning but recieve partial shading during the hot part of the afternoon. They sit in about 2-3 inches of rainwater but are about 8 inches above the water surface. All the other plants are going nuts for this arrangement even the Darlingtonia (one of the most stuck up, high maintenance plants I own) is not only growing but is growing vigorously. The plant had been outside since april and has shown almost no signs of improving! What to do?
 
It's almost certain your plant is suffering from lack of dormancy, a necessary thing for Sarraceinia to keep them happy and growing well.

I am not sure what can be done at this point, and will leave the cure to the Great Wise Ones. My inclination would be to put the rhizome in the fridge now, but then, the season would be all screwed up I dunno....

Sorry I can't be of more help.
 
I'd leave it alone. It is undoubtedly a very confused individual but, since it has a couple leaves, it's keeping itself alive.
 
There have been times where  I have been on the verge of digging a hole in my yard ripping the plant out, throwing it in the hole lighting it on fire covering it up and dancing on it's grave. However I realise it is an endangered plant so I am just going to leave it alone. If it dies then I guess will take a break from S. Rubra for a little bit. Besides I have some new plants coming through the mail. Hopefully my S. Leucophylla with a 5+ year rhizome plus my 2 new drosera and one new Pinguicula will hide the dark spot that is in my little garden. Everything in my CP garden is doing fantastic considering I am a newb and this has been my first year growing CP's, it just frustrates me to know end that there is nothing I can do for this little fellow except wait. And while he is taking his time not developing pitchers he is also not storing food for the winter for him to have a healthy time coming out of dormancy next year. Well Thanks for all your help. I will name this plant Tiny Tim, the Little Pain in the Butt, and if it survives it will be my greatest gardening triumph.
 
Good news and bad news. I think my S. Rubra is starting to wake up (probably from the constant yelling and swearing by me at it) The tallest pitcher (about 7 inches) finally opened up. however I noticed that after I noticed a catepillar munching on one of the younger pitchers. i got sweet bloody revenge however by dropping him in the pitcher of my S. Purpurea and watching him struggle as he slowly drowned to death. Surves the littlecritter right for eating ona plant I have been fighting with for months. This is the second catepillar in a week I have seen munching on my plants. last Friday i saw a catepillar munching on my S. Purpurea who i promptly took care of. All I have to say is if I see any catepillars munching on my Darlingtonia then it is over. I will declare war on all insect kind. Those lucky enough to survive my campaign of blood and pain will pray for the sweet relief of death as the cry for there fallen siblings. Insects have really been getting on my nerves lately...
 
whoa...
u make insects sound like public enemy #1...
but if u kill all the insects, what will become of CP's?
 
I will annhilate all insects within a 20 mile radius of my house how is that? Well at least the catepillars
 
Hmm... I don't think it's dormancy. I was in his EXACT situation in december: I saved a Rubra from lowe's as it was starting to mold, and brought it to college to grow it under my lit terrarium. It started out with 3 sad lookling pitchers. Now it has more than I can count, maye 4 inches high right now, but with 5 proto-pitchers and one new growing point! Rubras are slow growers in general, but I've head that the plants at Lowe's have just come out of TC and if you buy them in winter don't need dormancy the first year.

However, I need to ask if superthrive has any kind of color to it. When I rinsed off the rubra's rhizome when I brought it home, I remember the runoff being a shade of urine yellow:(. At the time I was afraid lowe's had fertilized it, but either it's some form of superthrive, or it is fertilizer and I managed to save it in time to wash enough off to not harm the roots but still give the plant a good boost.
 
Actually my Rubra didn´t have any changes at all in winter. But my leucos pitchers turned completely brown white. Then at spring they all sprouted onse more! Lovely how Mother nature works
smile_n_32.gif
don´t u think so?
 
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