I'm thinking of ordering a few Nepenthes species in the near future, but I'm very space limited at the moment. I'd probably not have room for a (relatively) full size plant of anything bigger than N. dubia. However, I also expect that my amount of space available will significantly increase in the next few years, and I would be able to fit small-ish species, like N. jacquelineae or aristolochioides, in my space. Thus, my question is, if healthy, how quickly do most of these species grow? How dependent is it on species? If I got, say, an N. Jacquelineae now, how quickly would it enter the vining stage, and how similar is this for other similarly-sized species? I apologize if this question is so species specific that it's impossible to answer generally, in which case I'll ask specifically about Jacquelineae and Hamiguitanensis, which are two relatively similarly sized plants as adults that I was looking at.
Some growth rates for various nepenthes species
- Thread starter schmiggle
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I mean, I know you said it's limited, but exactly how much space do you have now?
I wouldn't worry very much about any of those plants growing too much in the next year or so unless you're keeping them in a smaller terrarium or something. AND if you are concerned about them vining you could just chop up the vine into more plants once it reaches that point and you've done some research. I grow all my neps as house plants and that's generally how I keep them more compact.
At lest that's the insight I have for you under my circumstances. Neps never grow as fast as I want
I wouldn't worry very much about any of those plants growing too much in the next year or so unless you're keeping them in a smaller terrarium or something. AND if you are concerned about them vining you could just chop up the vine into more plants once it reaches that point and you've done some research. I grow all my neps as house plants and that's generally how I keep them more compact.
At lest that's the insight I have for you under my circumstances. Neps never grow as fast as I want
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Clue
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The problem with many "small" highland species is they tend to bolt once they reach a certain size and can be strong viners; in small setups it can be disheartening to keep trimming the vines back instead of allowing the plants to grow freely, especially for species with nice upper pitchers like N. jacquelineae and N. hamiguitanensis. The topic of small Nepenthes species seems to be a periodic discussion favorite but I think very few species can be kept well in very small spaces if conditions are good, and I say this as a grower with a fairly small and definitely overcrowded grow rack type setup. The few outliers that stay small in cultivation, like N. lamii (Wistuba's infamous old "sp. Doorman's Top no. 2") just happen to be incredibly difficult to keep at all.
Out of the species listed, I've only grown N. aristolochioides and if memory serves right, it grew noticeably quicker than my other highlanders and was also quick to vine. Under really good conditions I'd imagine you could get at least some vining within two years although it really depends on how established the plants are when you get them. N. dubia was also very quick to vine for me and it's hard to really quantify how much space you have based on a plant that can have 10 cm long internodes as it vines.
Out of the species listed, I've only grown N. aristolochioides and if memory serves right, it grew noticeably quicker than my other highlanders and was also quick to vine. Under really good conditions I'd imagine you could get at least some vining within two years although it really depends on how established the plants are when you get them. N. dubia was also very quick to vine for me and it's hard to really quantify how much space you have based on a plant that can have 10 cm long internodes as it vines.
For me, I think the issue is more horizontal than vertical space. I agree about N. jacquelineae and N. hamiguitanensis being sort of sad if you don't have space for uppers. The reason I say I have space for, say, N. dubia is because I already have a fairly tall terrarium (18"), so I can give it some vertical growing space. However, these plants usually take up a significant amount of horizontal room before growing vertically, and ones with larger pitchers take up more horizontal space. Based on the pictures I've seen of N. Dubia, inermis, tenuis, etc. they could grow vertically for a while in a tall terrarium, especially if trained to grow a little bit circuitously, like they do in the wild, rather than straight up. For example: 10cm=4". Suppose the pot is 4" tall. I can get three internodes' worth of growth just growing vertically. If the climbing happens along a non-vertical structure, I should be able to get at least four or five before having a problem. That gets tricky with other neps in the terrarium, but I think I could get it to work. However, N. jacquelineae, before beginning to vine, has something like a 2' spread (right? I might be misremembering), and many other plants are similar. So for those, I don't really have the room at the moment, and would only have the room, in the foreseeable future, as a windowsill or outdoor plant (during the summer). I've read that with certain specific care changes, they can do well under these conditions as long as the base humidity is not too low, but I also won't necessarily have even enough room for that within two years. All of which is to say this is very helpful into
I will have to stick with species that have a small adult horizontal spread for now. I know that for a tall terrarium I will need to put the plants closer to the light until they get taller. Is there any part of my logic that's wrong? Also, internode length seems like it should be related to growth speed--is that true?
I will have to stick with species that have a small adult horizontal spread for now. I know that for a tall terrarium I will need to put the plants closer to the light until they get taller. Is there any part of my logic that's wrong? Also, internode length seems like it should be related to growth speed--is that true?
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Other than N. campanulata, the only species that stays really small is N. argentii, at least that I know of. I can't grow the former, or at least would not want to grow it by itself in a terrarium since that seems like a waste of the available space. The latter would be great to try, and I could grow it with an orchid from a similar altitude, but it seems to have disappeared from cultivation or at least I haven't found it for sale anywhere.
The problem with something like N. lowii is that it eventually gets massive, and I'm not sure I will ever have the room for it. I think something like that simply needs a greenhouse at some point, which is something I will not have access to in the foreseeable future. If that is true for all nepenthes other than the two above, then so be it. I'll just try to find those two and remain content with them for now (and figure out how to take care of a highlander and a lowlander simultaneously--not, of course, in the same terrarium ). However, I think I could make a few species with a small horizontal spread work nicely by using the same techniques used for other vines that need to be size restricted: cutting so it branches, and giving it things to climb on that don't necessarily go straight up (ideally I'm imagining a kind of spiral or zig-zag, but even a stick at a 45 degree angle rather than vertical adds almost 50% to the possible length). Such a plant could never reach the sizes it might in the wild, but it could potentially have vines two or three feet long, and with more than one branch that's a fair amount of foliage. But there are any number of reasons this might not work, particularly if Nepenthes mostly don't like to branch.
or at least I haven't found it for sale anywhere. The problem with something like N. lowii is that it eventually gets massive, and I'm not sure I will ever have the room for it. I think something like that simply needs a greenhouse at some point, which is something I will not have access to in the foreseeable future. If that is true for all nepenthes other than the two above, then so be it. I'll just try to find those two and remain content with them for now (and figure out how to take care of a highlander and a lowlander simultaneously--not, of course, in the same terrarium
). However, I think I could make a few species with a small horizontal spread work nicely by using the same techniques used for other vines that need to be size restricted: cutting so it branches, and giving it things to climb on that don't necessarily go straight up (ideally I'm imagining a kind of spiral or zig-zag, but even a stick at a 45 degree angle rather than vertical adds almost 50% to the possible length). Such a plant could never reach the sizes it might in the wild, but it could potentially have vines two or three feet long, and with more than one branch that's a fair amount of foliage. But there are any number of reasons this might not work, particularly if Nepenthes mostly don't like to branch.Wait, really? By whom? How soon is very soon? I didn't realize I would have the opportunity to spend my life's savings on plants so shortly.
However, despite my excitement, I see through your clever attempt at distraction and am still interested in whether my idea will work at all with regards to vines (I know you can train grape vines, but I also know they take up more space than a terrarium).
Additionally, for anyone interested, there is yet another species of Nepenthes that neither climbs not scrambles and stays relatively small (1.5-2' wide with pitchers): Nepenthes mantalingajanensis. I think that the horizontal spread would probably be a bit large for me, but it could be useful information for someone with a somewhat different situation and/or somewhat more terrarium space.
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N. maxima 'mini' seems to be a pretty slow grower and it stays small. I grow mine indoors by a window. My plant produces a lot of basals that I've traded over the past several years. It has a few basals now, I'm itching to cut and trade, but I have to wait till they get bigger. I've always trimmed off larger basals, but I'm letting one vine out this time, as I'd like to see upper pitchers and possibly flowers. I acquired this plant from one of our amazing members several years ago, I wish I remember who it was, as I've really enjoyed this plant. Pitchers get abut 3 inches long and are attractive.
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