Nepenthes gyroscope?

[Nepenthe]

This never occured to me until a few days ago...

When my 'Neps are forming their pitchers, come h#ll or high water, the addition of new plants encroaching upon their space, prodding of leaves, rotation, -ANYTHING!-... they always manage to keep their pitchers pointing upwards.

Why is this? Is it as simple as the orientation of the fluid of the unopened pitchers? Light?
GRAVITY?
TIDES?!?

Go figure
-Trevor

 

[noah]

It's called geotropism - reaction to gravity. Plants can sense and react to many different factors in their environment - Light (phototropism), Water (hydrotropism), and others.

In this case, some of the meristematic cells in the tissue forming the pitchers senses the gravity and forms the pitcher so that it points in the opposite direction.

Hope this helps

-noah

 

[Nepenthe]

Quote[/b] ]It's called geotropism - reaction to gravity. Plants can sense and react to many different factors in their environment - Light (phototropism), Water (hydrotropism), and others.

In this case, some of the meristematic cells in the tissue forming the pitchers senses the gravity and forms the pitcher so that it points in the opposite direction.

Thanks, that clears it up some -although it seems (to me) as though the tissue conforming to the effect of gravity is actually that in the tendril, not in the pitcher. The tendril (in the cases of pitchers that are trapped under a leaf, squished against another pot, pressed against the glass, and finally left to hang in the air) appears twisted and distorted, as though it has been growing in different directions.
Well, either way your answer makes perfect sense.
Thanks!
-Trevor

 

[herenorthere]

I think it's the weight of the pitcher.  My N. x Nentrata has a wide range of pitcher sizes, all on fairly uniform leaves.  The largest pitchers hang as vertical as vertical can be.  Some of the smaller ones, however, hang at angles.  One was almost sideways.  But the small (oldest) pitchers have been through the most changes.  I'll be curious to see what happens when it starts pitchering again.