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my nep has been sitting in my windowsill for about a week now, still in its 3" original pot, i wanted to transplant it today. its a 4" tall n. ventricosa with a few totally black leaves on it(i imagine just needs trim from winter). the plant has like three 4 inch leaves with many smaller ones and only one 2inch pitcher on the plant(which is dying from the leaf snapping while removing from the death cube, hince the name?)

my questions are...

1. do i use the regular 50 sphag. peat/50 perlite mix? i i also have LFS handy.
2. i read people fertilize them?!?! foliar feed?(perhaps they meant feeding it bugs and not what i think?) i thought cp didnt need it??
3. i imagine the houston summer heat and killer direct sun would melt this plant, but would it be ok if it was hanging on a NW corner of the house where it would receive afternoon/dawn light?
4. does the soil need to be as moist as..say the sarracenia soil? or vft soil? i hear moist but not wet?

i have a 8" hanging pot just waiting now.....

i tried to read as much as possible beforehand but its tough to beat the expertise of someone whos been at it as long as some of you. i really appreciate the help.

thanks
~b
 
1: There is always a big debate on media for anything, but I'd use 50/50 LFS/perlite instead of peat/perlite. My personal preference for a general Nepenthes mix is 1/1/1 LFS/perlite/orchid mix (consisting of fir bark, charcoal, and clay rocks) but the different combinations of ingredients (many, many different ingredients, too) is endless. You need to play around and find a mix that works for you.

2: Fertilize in the pitchers or the media. I prefer fertilizing the pitchers at half strength twice a month. Just fill them up. They don't need it, but they benefit greatly from it. If you do this, don't feed them bugs. I used to feed foliarly when I was just starting to fertilize, but it doesn't do much more than build your own confidence.

3:Sure, but acclimate it first.

4:Moist but not wet. The media should never be soggy like Sarracenia media. If your pot has a tray built into it, remove the tray. Few Nepenthes will tolerate having their feet wet, and it can cause root rot. You want Nepenthes to have free draining, airy media, and let the top dry out ever so slightly before you water again. If you water before this, that's fine too but letting the top dry out a little (rest assured, the media below this is still moist enough) will encourage root growth.
 
thank you much sir, im off to transplant!

~b
 
Your welcome, but don't call me sir. You've 8 years older than I am hehe.
 
good to know, dont expect that generosity and kindness from me again. j/k its principle:poke:
 
Actually more and more people have been calling me sir lately. Takes some getting used to.

Then again I guess being called "Grandpa" will take more getting used to.
 
this irritates me, i transplanted the n. ventricosa into a hanging pot to be acclimated to the outdoors. well, when i got the plant out of the suffocating moss, i came to realize that i bought an unroot cutting. so now what do i do??? i really dont want it to die, should i leave him indoors until it roots? how long?

it should be botanical plunder not wonder!

~b
 
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also, not now obviously but later on, could i use the General Hydroponics 3 part fertilizer in a really weak mix with water and feed this to the pitchers?

~b
 
Plant it as if it was rooted, and it will root in a few weeks. Use Superthrive if you want.

I can't comment on that specific brand of fertilizer, but half strength twice a month is good.

If it contains the added micronutrients zinc and copper, don't use it.
 
  • #11
Well, those may be great for growing pot, I mean tomatoes, but the plants don't need the micro nutrients. Stick to macro nutrients, because zinc and copper are toxic to Nepenthes. Using a fertilizer with micro nutrients, as long as it does not list zinc and copper on the back, is probably OK, but you don't need it. AFAIK no one has done an experiment on that yet.

The good news is that that stuff is probably expensive, and you can use regular Orchid fertilizer or fish emulsion. Many people use MaxSea and/or Neptune's Harvest. I use Alaskan fish emulsion, personally.
 
  • #12
i was curious as this was weaker(npk) than most i saw that were like 30-15-12 or something ridiculous like that...ill check out your suggestions, are they fairly common?

we know where you mind is...:nono: hehehe

i was at the gardening store down the street and thats what they had that didnt come in 5 gallon jugs, they're more commercial than for enthusiasts.

~b
 
  • #13
For fertilizer I use Better Gro Orchid Plus (20-14-13). Use 1/4 teaspoon per gallon every two to three weeks (basically when I remember). Check out this thread for discussion on other ways to fertilize.

xvart.
 
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