Honzo's Texas Mini-Bog(s)

[Hamata-Honzo]

Howdy, y'all!
Starting a series of pots in the front yard. These will be fully exposed to the harsh Texas sun and relatively low humidity (generally around 30%-40%). My main purpose for this thread is to hopefully clear up any doubts that these plants can be grown in harsh conditions such as that of Western, TX. The plants are coming in tomorrow. The set-up is a large Terra-cotta pot within a plastic barrel pot. The outer barrel pot will always maintain about two inches of water. The purpose of it is to keep the sides of the inner pot cool at all times of the day (I see this will be most critical where I live). the soil composition is the basic 1:1 Peat to Perlite mixture. There is some LFS on the bottom and top layers to retain moisture and hold the soil in place. Water is Distilled. No Sun Protection. No humidity domes. Just that Raging sun and some hopeful Sarracenia.

If these take off, I hope to add a few sundews/Flytraps/ Butterworts/Utrics to the bog. There is already a Lowe's Deathcube Sarracenia Purpurea in there as of a few days ago.

I think my fingers will break with all this crossing....

Species coming in tomorrow...
Sarracenia Leucophylla 'Tarnok'
Sarracenia Flava 'Rubricorpora'
Sarracenia Rubra 'Gulfensis'
Sarracenia Alata (Texas Variety)

Some pics to get started...

 

[SerMuncherIV]

Wouldn't recommend using clay pots...maybe for Drosophyllum, but definitely not Sarracenia...

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

hmm... Why not SerMuncherIV? I have heard about all the porous water loss stories... is that what you are referring to? If that's the case trust me I will be very diligent watering these beasties.

 

[SerMuncherIV]

Well, that's one thing, but I was mainly referring to the fact that porous materials such as clay tend to leech harmful minerals into the soil over time.

 

[spdskr]

Sarrs and VFTs should do well in your hot and sunny climate. Humidity doesn't matter as long as you keep them sufficiently watered, at least in my experience of growing these plants in the arid west. Native sundews should also do well, but may not be very sticky on windy, arid days.

Looks from your photos that the location is under a tree. For best results, you may want to select an unshaded spot. Sarrs and VFTs do best in full sunlight.

Regarding the clay pot, I hope it is new. If not, it may leech chemicals into your soil as the OP mentioned. The clay will also hasten water loss. Plastic pots are preferred. Also, depending on how tall the clay pot is, you may need to start with more than two inches of water in the outer pot, especially if the pot is significantly taller than the length of the plant roots. I try to never let the top of my soil become dry in order to assure saturation at lower levels. You may be surprised by how much water evaporates from the soil on windy days.

Keep us posted on your progress.

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Thanks for the thoughtful replies. The pot is new, and I contacted the nursery from which I obtained the pot. The pot is composed of a high-fired 'true' red clay. It is fired to the point that the material is rendered inert. Even still, I will have watchful eyes of mineral blooms on the sides of the pots. Its day 5 and the pot has been receiving daily watering, and still not even the slightest bloom (though It is probably to early to tell). All the same, if the pot shows even the slightest sign of being ineffective this season, I will change it during dormancy for the next season. I think regardless they are safe for now.

I have also been maintaining two-three inches of water in the outer pot. This is checked every morning and mid-day. the top layer of LFS is also constantly saturated with frequent top watering. I will increase the amount of water tomorrow in the outer pot to around half its length. I just wanted to make sure everything was airy and sound before I flood the beasties

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Now for some plant updates! Everybody is potted up and literally 5 minutes after planting the flies started their feeding frenzy! lots of food for their first day! during the hottest part of the day the pitchers held up nicely. no burns and acclimated already by the wonderful vendor. Now to watch and see!

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Close-ups. Sorry for crap quality. Using IPhone at the moment... was too excited to set up the DSLR. This'll do. doesn't do em' justice tho.

 

[Knuckles]

Nice sarrs! Mine are all burnt on top in North TX X_X

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

3-day update...
No pictures sorry maybe next week to show minor progression.
Plants were moved to an even sunnier location. I was getting paranoid...
looking into water distillers, recommendations appreciated!
Oh ya... and flies are EVERYWHERE...

 

[Knuckles]

Here are mine that you wanted to see Honzo. These are the beautiful Rubras from Ryan after being kept in full sun. Growth halted with full sun so I may move them back to partial. They're in plastic pot within a nice ceramic seafood bucket :grin: filled to the brim with water.

DSCN0142 by blu-bear, on Flickr
Scientifically proven that the lobster design helps them stay cool.
DSCN0143 by blu-bear, on Flickr

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Haha thanks Knuckles! ya this Texas sun can do a number on the plants.... In fact of all plants in the mini bog right now the one that is experiencing any heat stress to speak of (albeit very little) is the Sarracenia Alata... hmm perhaps the lack of anthocyanin makes it more susceptible? hmm...

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

I will be updating this thread shortly! sorry for the lack of activity, I have doing a lot since I started this bog! all the plants looked beautiful at the end of the season and put out some nice growth. I can't wait for the new season. I just looked outside and the Leucophylla has a flower bud on the way! Will be posting pics in a few.

 

[BPB]

Update??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[limeslide]

Been growing Sarracenia and VFTs since I joined this website in the hot Texas sun, found best location to grow mine is actually at the edge of the patio where they only receive full sun from noon till sunset, being out in the yard in full sun has done a number on them in past years! Its pretty wild, how much of a weapon the sun can feel like/be depending on your location. Good luck on your endeavor! I'm moving to Austin in a few months, won't be able to take my plants, but it's nice to know there are some CP growers there!

 

[Accident]

I saw that study. Lobster pots are the best.

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Here's a long-overdue update! sorry
What's happened so far: Everything has grown well and we are now entering my second season of growth. Sarracenia AG3 and Rubricorpora weren't as red as I'd hoped they would be, but hopefully that was from establishing themselves in a new environment. They did, however, produce my largest pitchers. I will be changing out the soil next season regardless for a 60% Peat, 20% Sand, 20% Perlite mixture. Everything showed tremendous growth. Last season, S. Leuco flowered. This season, S. Rubra and S. Purpurea flowered. The latter is super exciting as I rescued this from a nursery. New additions included a Sarr. Alata 'Night' STRAIGHT from Peter D'amato's California Carnivores (I went there and literally hand selected it with the guidance of Peter himself!). The recirculating water system has proven invaluable during the hottest months, and it gets hot. For some bad news, I lost all Drosera. One species that showed progress was D. Hybrida, which sent up several flowers throughout the season and doubled in size. I lost it to poor care-taking during the winter, and its hibernacula rotted away. Also lost was the S. Leuco during the last season, which I suspect was due to its disliking of frequent on/off flooding. Others have seemed to enjoy it. Lots of new spring growth in the pot RN, will try to post pics. the uploader on this forum is highly discouraging.

 

[Hamata-Honzo]

Update??

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Better late than never, I suppose! there ya go. As I said, will try to post pics.