Age of sarracenia?

[swords]

Hi folks, I've boughten a bunch of sarracenia species today (S rubra, S flava, S purpurea ssp. purp, S purpurea ssp. venosa, and another S purp that may be the burkei var., S minor and S alata) and what I'm wondering is there any way I can tell how old these plants are?
They're in 3" pots and max about 5" tall but closer to 4". I read online (at blackjungle.com) that I could grow them inside a terrarium for the first 2 years without a cold dormancy so long as the light cycles followed the normal cycle and they would get to the size of a 5 year old plant within two years Is that true? and how big would a 5 year old sarracenia be?

Thanks for any thoughts!

 

[sarracenia]

At 4 inches tall, I would guess they are currently in their 3rd year of growth. However, that assumes they've been living a "normal" life. Several other factors could influence their size. But I think it would be safe to say, since you just got them, that they are no older than 3.

 

[sarracenia]

Forgot to say:
A five-year-old Sarracenia, grown from seed under traditional methods would be approaching full size for whatever species it happened to be.

 

[gardenofeden]

5 years is very optimistic for a mature plant from seed. I personally find it is more like seven or eight years.

 

[sarracenia]

If you skip the first two dormancies, and fertilize every few weeks during what would've been their first two dormancies, you can usually get plants to bloom the spring after the first dormancy, if not, certainly the next one.