N. truncata

[superimposedhope]

Hi all,
The main stem of a new leaf unrolling is turning brown-black. The actual leaf part is green but the stem and beginning tendril look to be dieing. The other leaves have some slight rust discoloration but only slightly. Help please I would hate to lose my monster.

My enclosure: 45gl pentagon
95deg. F.
96% humidity
1-65wtt 6500K compactflourescent 7500lumens
2-20wtt "sun"(full spectrum)
2" water at bottom (pots above)
16 hrs on 8 off
potted in 80%NZ sphagnum and 20%leafmulch

 

[Odysseus]

Along with all your conditions, do you have ventilation gaps in the lid?

 

[superimposedhope]

No, I don't but I do have Co2 running in but not oxygen. The lid would'nt hold water out but it's pretty airtight. What's wrong?

??
Joe

 

[Nepenthe]

Has there been a recent Event of Significance™ in your chamber that may cause a 'nep to tweak out?
10+ degree temp change? Humidity fluctuation? Have you recently moved the chamber? New plant? Different water? Spill some strong Superthrive or something on the leaf or on the soil?

I guess what I am getting at is: has your little micro environment in the chamber been constant for the last month or week or so?

In any event, your climate stats appear to be pretty hardcore. Humidity of 95% and a 96degree temp are pretty severe from what I've heard for growing of N. truncata. The plant is said to be pretty tolerant of a little deviation from ideal growing conditions.

How long have you had the plant? Is it established?

Anyway, that leaf mulch idea is interesting. I have never heard of anyone using that in a media mix. It makes sense, though.

 

[fre8train]

what about that leaf chop why does it make sence I have so many leafs and not so much spagnum

 

[superimposedhope]

I have had the plant for 2 1/2 weeks. The first day I broke the growing tip off, but 1 week later it sent out a new leaf and began unrolling. At the first sign of unrolling (3-4days ago) I noticed that it was beginning to turn brown on the main stem. I then used some BanRot on it (just alittle), but it has been progressing still. The leaf parts are still brilliant though. When I got it, it had one pitcher and 4 leaves with no tendrils and 1 new tendril (the 1 that I broke). 1 leaf died and I pinched it off but the others are still green as well. It lives with some other epiphytic plants(Rhipsalis,Heliocereus, Disocactus) The Co2 actually was started about the same time as I noticed this, but growth rates have also picked as well. Could it be the Co2 ? I have read of it doing good for Neps. I grow lots of other plants but this is my first Nep. I need some help!

I worked for a Interiorscape company and I used to bring home all kinds of plants and shred them up and let them decompose. I also add Mycrorhiza to it as well.

Thanks
Joe

 

[The Griffin]

That is quite a set-up. Are the sun lamps part of the 6500K lamp or separate? I am wondering if you are experiencing a significant temperature drop from the sun lamps going off. Have you thought of using a submergable aquarium heater to heat the tank? If you used that with some more ventilation, it would make it warm, humid and have some air flow.
Other than that, I guess the only other suspiscious thing would be the leaf mulch you are making, as it would hard to know what chemicals were used in growing the plants that it is composed of. Do you still live in Nebraska? Lowe's in Omaha has a orchid mix with fine orchid bark, perlite and charcoal. That would make a fine thing to mix with the sphagnum.

Regards,

Joe

 

[Odysseus]

With the fact that your plant is very recent, it makes sense why a new leaf shows different signs of growth.  I have heard that you can typically judge the whole Neps health based on the newest leaf.  That new leaf will show what is going on, too little light, minerals in substrate, pests, and etc.  

I would agree with everyone here, you need to give your neps some air circulation, possibly to save the nep from such temperature fluctuations with the sun lamps being on and off.  Plus, your leaf mulch is a risk, but NOT necessarily a hazard.  It all depends on what is composed of.

I think you give your nep a little more time and little less heat 95f can be quite a bit for a Truncata.  Here's a little info from Jurassic-Gardens.com:

truncata 230 - 600 m Philippines

Lowlanders

Lowland Nepenthes are those which grow below 1000 meters elevation above sea level in lowland swamps, heath forests, low hills and lower montane elevations. These plants almost never experience temperatures lower than 70*F and the temperatures can get very high during the day (up to 105*F on the face of mountain cliffs) however the humidity must be correspondingly high to avoid desiccation of the plant in the higher heat ranges.

Ideally for cultivation daytime temps for Lowland Nepenthes should range from 85-95*F and nights of 70-75*F.

So, temp is proabably too high.    I hope this helps!  I wish your Truncata all the best!  

If you are interested Josh has great Nepenthes plants and he owns this website.  Check it out.  Nepenthes Cultivation

 

[superimposedhope]

I use a submergeable heater in the water. the "sun " lamps are those Chroma 50's. I am just adding a little extra color to the spectrum. At night the temp drops to 85 or so the heating register (for the house) also sits right behind the tank. Does it sound like maybe a heat or humidity problem? I thought maybe a rot or it kinda looks like the rust spotting. I don't know though.
As for the medium, I already have charcoal, pine bark, redwood bark, fir bark, osmunda fiber, spanish moss, sphagnum moss, sheet moss, perlite, ?lite(used in concrete, expanded clay product), leaf mold, leaf mulch, lichens, and of course dirt. I am one of those with a recipe for all my mediums.
I appreciate all the help. It seems to be trying real hard, I just don't know how or if I should help it. There's also a light yellowing at the margins. Iron?

Any help is still welcome

Thanks
Joe

 

[Tony Paroubek]

I am inclined to believe too hot and too humid with lack of air circulation and potential root problem. Or the excessive temperature and humidity has caused disease in the growth point/stem of the plant.

A mix of some fir bark, sphagnum, and perlite is all you need. It should drain quickly and be loose and airy but also hold a good amount of moisture. The potting mix should be kept fairly moist but not sopping wet all the time. Leaf mulch might be too rich or cause disease problems as it decomposes.

Can you explain what you mean by 'brown on the main stem'? Do you mean the part connecting the leaf to the center of the plant? or the tendril hanging off the end of the leaf? The tendril portion is usually brown from fuzzy hair covering it. If it the section connecting the green leaf blade to the center of the stem then there is a major problem.
Tony

 

[superimposedhope]

It is brown/black from the tip of the tendril all the way to the base. The stem that connects the leafy portion to the center of the plant. The central "vein" that turns into the tendril. The actual leaf tissue is still green though as well as the other leaves and stems. This is only on the new shoot. Although a portion of another leaf is orangey/rust colored.

Thanks
Joe

 

[Odysseus]

The portion of the other leaf that is orange/rust colored, without a picture is hard to say, but my guess is that its the natural red coloration of the leaves. Does it look like this:

Does your orange seem like this?

Your other problems do narrow down to too much humidity, heat, and the possible root problems. Give your plant some Air circulation and lessen the heat during the day and we'll see if the plant's soil medium is causing it. However, I would change the soil soon, since your ingredients may have caused the problem and could be too much to risk with time.

 

[Odysseus]

Good luck! Keep us posted.

 

[superimposedhope]

The coloring could be that, though its hard to tell. It seems in alot of the pics I've been seeing the light looks heavy in red spectrum like a High Pressure Sodium bulb. My light is extremely white and very intense more like a Metal Halide. Is this a problem? Like I posted before mine is 6500K and like 7000 lumens. Very efficient energy wise anyway(65wtt).
I'll try lowering some heat and humidity. As well as taking out the mulch. I know the mulch works great for epiphytes in general. I know some Neps are epi but I dont know if the same rules apply.I'll go with the Sphagnum 70%-perlite10%-bark10%-lava or pumice something??10%

Thanks guys
Joe

 

[Capslock]

Joe,
Your white light is actually better than the red/yellow tint of the High Pressure Sodiums.

I'm with everyone else, lower your temperatures, and open the lid so there's good air circulation. You don't need humidity and temperatures that high. Good luck, and keep at it!

Capslock

 

[The Griffin]

I think that will work well enough. Some of the largest pitchers I have seen photos of were grown in fairly organic mixes. Mike . from CP Jungles uses 100% LF sphagnum and Steve LaWarre uses 2:2:2:1 peat, sphagnum, bark and charcoal. That makes more than 50% of the mix LF sphagnum and peat. A lot of people would not have such a high composition of those two. Both have greenhouse space, which may factor in(air curculation).

Regards,

Joe

 

[superimposedhope]

Hi guys(girls included),
I vented the tank and that also lowered the humidity. I also repotted to all NZ sphagnum. Speaking of which does it really make a difference to CP's to have "New Zealand(NZ)" sphagnum or does it matter?
Any way we'll see in a week or so, I tried not to move the roots themselves. They look ok to me, very wirey/bristle like. The soil that it was shipped in is very broken down, it was sphagnum-now it is a mush mess and holding water too well. When I first got it, I left the original soil in but upon repotting today I noticed the whole pot to be extremely soggy though it is not in standing water. I removed the mulch and the original mushy mess and it is more free draining now. Though I am new to Neps as a grower in general I think that might have been part of the problem the mush was sooooo soggy. I will keep updated on how it did or did'nt work.

Thanks
Joe

 

[The Griffin]

Michael Catalani from CP Jungle uses the Wisconsin stuff(judging by the pics) and Peter D'Amato says he has noticed no diff in growth in camparison. I love the feel of NZ(Chilean is nice too) and it's really good with Drosera, as it tends to not grow. Wisconsin usually has so may sticks and stuff in it and the others are so clean. Sorry for this crude analogy, but when I look at NZ, I feel it's so clean and fluffy, I could wipe my butt with it. Again, sorry for that, and if I ever send anyone sphagnum, you can be sure it has not been used in such a manner.

In short, if you can't get the good stuff cheap, by all means use the cheaper stuff.

Regards,

Joe

 

[Borneo]

I think you've you've got some good advice from some experienced growers.  One question occurs to me though, are you sure it's a lowland N. truncata and not a highland one?  If it turns out that you have one of the highland variety (relatively recently introduced to cultivation) then that would explain a lot with the conditions you report in your enclosure!

If the plant has a lot of hairs on the leaf blade (either on top or underneath) then it's highland.  Also, was the pitcher that was on the plant when you got it colorful?  The highland variety in general exhibits a lot more coloration on the pitcher body than it's lowland counterpart.

 

[superimposedhope]

Honestly I did'nt expect to get this much help. Thanks guys.

Well, for starters the one I got, I got from Cook's and it was like $15.99 or something close. If I remember right the highland is like $200. The pitcher that came on it still has not opened and is bright green with light pink/red veining beginning to show now, mainly toward the mouth. I cut the the whole new leaf off because it had gone totally black on and in the center of the stem and was mushy, while the leaf part that unrolls never did go black.It was dead base to tendril tip. One of the other leaves is getting orangey colored and kinda leathery and tough on one side of the leaf. I have done as directed.ie venting, repotting. The terrarium is a steady 80degF. with 80%humidity.

Another ? is: I have already bought an N.veitchii and an N.merilliana before these other problems occured. I did'nt buy more while this is one is in trouble. I bought them a few weeks ago with delayed shipping, they won't be here till like mid march. Am I going to have problems with them as well or are they more "beginner" Neps? I like big plants.

Thanks
Joe