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I've got some D. nitidula ssp. omissa x D. pulchella, D. pulchella x nitidula, and D. nitidula ssp. allantostigma x D. ericksoniae growing from gemmae received from KingDom079. I sowed them on 1/21/05 and had been growing them in plastic bags near a sunny window. All the little plants looked great. I took the pots out of the bags and put the plants outside to avoid the fungal issue due to lack of air movement. Now the little guys don't look so good. I'm in Georgia, and it's in the 40's to 60's during the day and into the 30's at night. Was this too much of a temp change for them? Are they getting too much sun now? Or maybe a combo of both?

I brought them back inside tonight and have them sitting near the same sunny window in a tray of water. I hope they survive...

Thanks in advance for any responses.
 
now i dont know this but i am guessing they might have suffered in the temp change and also the humidity probably went down after u took them out of the bag. sounds like u did the right thing by bringing them in to warmer temps and the tray of water should help humidity. hope they live and grow happily


Brad
 
Thanks, Brad. That's kinda what I figured. Just wanted to check and see if anything else could be done. I'm sooo new at this. I guess making mistakes is one way to learn, though.
 
probably the temp change did it. pygmy dews like LOTS of light so the sun shouldnt of hurt them unless it was to much to fast. also you do not need the bag. they do not need the extra humidity. pygmys will do fine in quite low humidity. the vast majority of Drosera do not need high humidity. i lost Drosera as a newbie to high humidity which caused fungus growth and rot, ive never lost one due to low humidity over the last 18 months(im talking 25-30% ambiant humidity being the norm)
 
also remember to sow some gemmae in one place and others in another so that not all of them die at once.
 
Thanks, guys. Rattler - I'll remember that about the lower humidity requirement next time I try this little experiment. Wolf - that's a great idea about sowing the gemmae in different places. I'll definitely remember that one, too.

Maybe the little guys I have now will make it if I treat them right...

Thanks for the help!!
smile.gif
 
Jason-

Pygmies, or at least the ones I sent you, are fairly resilient. These hybrids are fairly forgiving when given less than ideal conditions, but should resume normal, healthy growth when their environment improves. Any sudden change in environment will negatively affect a plant's growth. The biggest change that caused the ill side effects with your babies was the change in relative humidity coupled with the temperature drop. I assume you took the pots out in one fail swoop. A better alternative would have been to gradually open the bag over the course of a few days or week to acclimate the plants to their new conditions in much the same way you would "harden off" indoor plants  going outside before transplanting.

I agree with Rattler about humidity- pygmies don't require much humidity in the air due to the fact that they remain so close to the soil surface. So long as you have the pot damp, there will be enough evaporation to keep the plants dewy. Here in central CA, I have plants outdoors in summer with 100+ degrees and relative humidity in the teens at times. The plants look no worse for wear.

And as for AlphaWolf's comments, I can vouch for his comments as well. It's like putting all your eggs in one basket. I've lost cultures of favorite plants due to insects, weather, and forgetfullness on my part--- all of which could have been salvaged had I had a back-up.
 
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