Fertilizing

[QSRUDDY]

Hey,
I've been wanting to start fertilizing my sarracenias and I was wondering what brand names are the best and at what dosages.
I've seen Miracid and Miracle Gro Orchid Fertilizer in the local stores, are these any good?

Responses will be appreciated
Thanks!

 

[uphwiz]

im pretty sure you should not use any of these fretilizers on sarrs. something more organic like fish emulsion or maybe just a few bugs in the pitchers is all they need, but i ever fretilize my sarrs they pretty much get all they need form mother nature, too much fertilizer and the wrong kind will burn the to the ground from what ive heard.
im sure there will be more advise , ill be watching to see what others suggest too.

 

[chibae]

if they are growing outside and have healthy pitchers why would you need to fertilize them?

 

[QSRUDDY]

they are outside, but last year, since i was inexperienced, i didnt provide the right conditions so they got really weak and this spring they didnt put up very good pitchers. so now they are only putting up phyllodes and i would like to give them a boost so they are strong and healthy for next year.

 

[Wire Man]

The Miracle Gro orchid ferts work well if you use them at a quarter strength. That's what I use and the Sarr seedlings that get foliar sprayed with it seem to love it.

 

[QSRUDDY]

Thanks

 

[Millipede]

i use osmocote 14-14-14 slow release. just sprinkle a bit of pellets around the plant

 

[DroseraBug]

i use osmocote 14-14-14 slow release. just sprinkle a bit of pellets around the plant

I have great results with osmocote smart release fertilization but not that ratio of nutrients for 0 to approximately two or three yr olds. See the Brittnacher ICPS article recommendations. Don't over do it. I've posted the reference to the article several times on the forums. Read this in detail. Good article:

Brittnacher, John (2009) Soil fertilization of Sarracenia seedlings. Carniv. Pl. Newslett. 38(2):36-41

 

[Millipede]

i remember that article. it's what made me start fertilizing my sarrs

 

[Whimgrinder]

I would recommend extreme caution if you choose Miracle Gro: this stuff is generally regarded as the wrong stuff for mineral-sensitive insectivores. (Sarracenia are quite intolerant of high levels of nutrient in the root zone) if you feel you MUST try a fertilizer, choose the Osmocote instead.

 

[cpbobby]

i use miracle grow 30-10-10 water soluable orchid fertilizer diluted to 1/4 strength and 1/3 a pinch of sugar microwaved for about 7 seconds in a small cup once every other week; however i only squirt a little bit in the pitchers(about 1/2 full so they don't tip over). I don't do root fertilization but they seem to respond well to it to having it in the pitchers. I have done it once weekly but not all the time.

 

[DroseraBug]

Hey,
I've been wanting to start fertilizing my sarracenias and I was wondering what brand names are the best and at what dosages.
I've seen Miracid and Miracle Gro Orchid Fertilizer in the local stores, are these any good?

Responses will be appreciated
Thanks!

Hi,

I grow Sarracenia from seed for the first two years indoors and I have had increased vegetative growth using osmocote smart release indoor/outdoor fertilizer pellets 19-6-12. You can find it at hardware stores including Lowes or all the others that are in your town or Ebay. However, your post is not specific regarding seedlings or adults?. Pitcher plants do not need fertilizer ever! They capture bugs. No need to fertilize them, especially no need to fertilize mature plants. All of this is my opinion.

If you want to stimulate faster growth from seed, the Brittnacher study recommends the smart release pellets I mentioned above (pg 1 of this thread) (seedlings only) following the study in the DISCUSSION. However, if you use it, my opinion again, please read the Brittnacher article carefully because of course pitcher plants need reduced treatments compared to other plants given their adaptations to nutrient poor conditions. The Brittnacher article discusses this that pertains to fert. per unit volume of the pot used. I used to try diluted orchid foliar spray but after trying the soil fert mentioned in the article discussion referenced in this thread; I will not use foliar spray again for now.

If your question pertains to mature plants, no need to fertilize unless you want to grow mature plants that are spindley, ugly, attract more pests??, or have a reduced need for carnivory, thus producing unattractive pitchers.

 

[jbrittnacher]

Thanks DroseraBug. Since writing that article I have done additional experiments all with basically the same results for different crosses and species. I also have heard from commercial growers who add fertilizer to their water. They use very dilute amounts accomplishing the same thing. For them it is easier to put the fertilizer in the water. For small growers it is easier to use pellets. The main thing is a very low level evenly over the growing season.

My next project is using Osmocote pellets in Heliamphora pots. I have 8 identical juvenile plants to torture. Has anyone tried fertilizer pellets with Heliamphora?