Its finally here

[vraev]

Hi guys,

Remember my blunder? Here you go:

Presenting N.talangensis. I love the pitcher though....sooo cute. The cutest nep pitchers I have ever seen in person. Its like a tiy funnel.

the pitcher is around 2 inches in size from top to bottom.

I potted it in sphag + some fine orchid bark+ a handful of my coarse orchid bark that I used on my ceph. I was adding charcoal in there..but then read that some neps apparently hate it.....so I removed as much as I could...and so yeah...basically ended up with like 70% or 80% sphag + 20% bark + the magic trich. I put trich powder while making the mix and then I also put some trich powder directly on the plants roots when I potted it.

BTW...remember my ceph repotting...the ceph has recovered. Even the pitchers are still intact, open and nice. I hope the streak continues and I hope this pitcher stays as well.

Any help...any suggestions...any ideas....any to do's.....any DO NOT EVERs are all appreciated.

thanks guys,

vraev

 

[vraev]

btw...lol! that pond basket pot which I used, lol! I think my rajah would appreciate that more. But well... its all good.

 

[phissionkorps]

Who told you neps hate charcoal? Thats definitely not true in general. I'm not discounting the possibility of maybe a handful of species not liking it, but thats far from likely IMO, as charcoal is relatively inert. I've used a good amount of charcoal in my mix for a long time with no ill effects. Its a component of a lot of people's mixes, and I've never heard of anyone having problems with it. Some people *think* charcoal breaks down and releases a crazy amount of nutrients or something into the soil, but that's not the case.

Wth is trich? Trichinella?

 

[vraev]

My wife and I tried charcoal (more on curiosity than because of good reason) for a few years with about 30 different plants of a few dozen Nepenthes species and hybrids. We tried a pumice, charcoal, and Sphagnum mix in a 1:1:1 ratio. After two years, we knocked the plants out of their pots and looked at the root systems. The Nepenthes hated it---they had stopped growing almost immediately after the repotting, and we discovered that the roots had refused to explore the new potting material. We repotted the plants into a Sphagnum and pumice medium, and the plants resumed growth.

http://www.sarracenia.com/faq/faq3330.html

Barry Rice says that.


Trich is trichoderma.

 

[phissionkorps]

Barry Rice also says windowsill growing shouldn't be done or should be "left to the experts". I like and respect the guy, but some of his nep culture info is totally off. Like I said, I've never heard of anyone else having charcoal problems, myself included. I've had neps potted in charcoal-containing mixes for approx 2 years with no ill effects. They never stopped growth. I can't draw a comparison between nep roots not growing anymore and charcoal being in the mix. I think if the charcoal caused that, which is totally unlikely, that would be the first and only case of that ever happening. What is way more likely is that during that time it was watered too much, or that mix held more water than the second, as neps constantly provided moisture have underdeveloped root systems.

On another note...is "blunder" still vernacular

 

[vraev]

well...ppl don't really say "blunder" in NA. I am more used to british english from India and we do indeed use the word occasionally.

well....I agree...Barry Rice may not be very good with neps..but well.... I just didn't want to risk it you know...I guess I went the safe route. My neps so far are doing decent in 100% sphagnum. So I went heavy on sphag. I also read on Danz's website that talang likes a lot of sphag in its mix..so thats why I went with close to 80% sphag and just random bits of 2 grades of orchid bark.

I just didn't want to take any chances. This nep is too cute to try an experiment.

BTW....as u can see the stem is sooo BENT, is that alright? is it any thing to worry about? the growth point looks fine though. I don't want the plant to consider making basals becos of the bent stem and rather grow and come back.

 

[Jefforever]

The bent part shouldn't matter at all.

 

[vraev]

great. thanks.

BTW>...the pitcher bud tip thingy is a bit hairy and kinda WHITE.... is it fungus or is it normal?

thanks,

var

 

[Nepenthusiast]

Barry Rice also says windowsill growing shouldn't be done or should be "left to the experts".

I know! Where did he get those CRAZY ideas?

Vraev: Mine are fuzzy and white too. Its the way they look as they develop.

 

[vraev]

aah...nice to know. thanks mate.

 

[phissionkorps]

btw, if it does make a basal, just leave it and it will be fine. You don't need to do anything about it unless it puts out more than 2 basals at once, as having two total growing points isn't going to hurt the plant, especially at that size.

 

[Nepenthes]

Is more than 2 basals cause for concern? I have a gymnamphora with a few basals that started shortly before I received the plant. It does seem like it has slowed the overall growth, and each successive leaf/pitcher is smaller than the previous. The plant does not seem to be dying, but it is a little disconcerning to see the pitchers getting smaller and smaller (on the main growth point), almost reverting to a younger stage.

BTW congrats on the Talangensis Vraev! Mine still hasn't pitchered for me yet, but it is looking healthy. I am guessing it was because of the hot summer in which I received it.

 

[phissionkorps]

It does seem like it has slowed the overall growth, and each successive leaf/pitcher is smaller than the previous.

That's what I'm talking about will happen. In some cases, having a lot of basals has killed the main vine, while the basals continue to grow.

 

[vraev]

yup....totally agree to PK on that .. My ventrata has like 6 basals. the main growth vine suddenly blackened its tip. The interesting thing is the leaves on that vine are still healthy and nice...and this blackening occured like 5 months ago. and right when it occured the 6th basal sprouted.

thanks nepenthes, I have my fingers crossed that this pitcher won't dry up...but...I guess for now...I am just looking for new growth.

cheers,

vraev