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Two questions: should i take cuttings?

Cindy

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My crazy gracilis...never had pitchers larger than 1 and a half inches...Is it time to trim off the 3 taller vines and get a bushier plant?

gracilis_fef_rs.jpg


And it's monsoon season here at South East Asia, lots of rain...then I found this CUTE looking mushroom growing in the pot of gracilis shown above.  Are they harmful to neps?
I was wondering if fungi helps to break down the peat into nutrients for the neps...

mushroom_with_grace1.jpg
 
How much light are you growing your gracilis in? It appears to have dark green leaves in the photo. Most of my plants with large pitchers that are grown in bright light have  leaves that are a brighter shade of green. But then I grow indoors and the plants are 30-60 cm below the lights and they get the same amount/type of light, humidity and temp everyday.

As for mushrooms the part you photographed is only the fruiting body of the mushroom plant (the rest is fine white threads under the soil). I don't know how or if mushrooms would affect the plants, the mycelium of the fungi may eventually choke out the Nep. Then again the soil for your Nep ought to be sterile and nutrient devoid enough to starve out the fungi before too long. Perhaps your soil has too much nutrients and that is why mushrooms can thrive and the plant has small subsequently small pitchers? I know if  I overfertilize a nep it's pitchers will get smaller.

How long has this plant been in the same media, what is it's media?
 
The only thing I can say is: "Cindy, with all your respect, you should rrrrrrrrrrrrip those mushroms OFF!!!
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Mushroms are parasites and sooner or later they'll start sucking the life out of your plant, or even worse...it can release spores and infect all of your plants too!!!
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Do something quick with'em!

Take care
 
Cindy,
The mushroom question came up a couple monthes back.  If I remember correctly, it was decided they were bad because they broke down the wood in the potting mix releasing nutrients into the soil.

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Thanks! The shrooms are already shrivelled.
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Swords:
The plant is at the window facing the east. It's in sphagnum peat.  The leaves were lighter in colour but have darken since I used some orchid fertiliser on the plant. I guess the mushrooms grew because of the weather as well as the extra nutrients.  Too humid, it's been raining almost every day.

The "problem" with this plant is that it grows A LOT of basal shoots.  The typical scenario is like this:
1. I take a cutting
2. The cutting grows to about 4 inches and it starts to grow basal shoots
3. The original cutting usually turns brown and dies off when the basal shoot or shoots grows to about 2 inches

This plant is a cutting.  The original plant is also about 20 inches tall.  Both plants have vines are turning brown fast and will soon die off.

So I only get small pitchers!  I'm actually suspicious if it's a gracilis at all! Look:

gracilis_bright_light_opened_rs.jpg
 
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