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Hi Everyone,

Here is a picture of a ground shoot pitcher on our N. cantleyi (bicalcarata x gracilis -natural hybrid).  
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The color ranges from solid dark purple to almost black, every now and then a pitcher will have some green flecks on it.  Wish we had a pic of the more mature pitchers on the main vine, but we recently took cuttings and reduced the plant to ground shoots (sorry, all of the cuttings have already been reserved for our local nep nuts).  The largest pitchers so far have been about four inches, as the pitchers get larger, they take on a more squat shape.

This plant probably originated with Rob (as he stated in the lowii in bloom post), but came to me from either Clyde Bramblett or Bruce Bednar many years ago.  The plant was grown neglectfully for years on the patio of our small apartment, we rarely saw any worthwhile pitchers.  When we moved and built the greenhouse, Michelle went on a major repotting rampage, the N. cantleyi came to life with gorgeous pitchers.  

Rob, when we have a display of red/purple/black pitchers cascading over the sides of the pot, we will take another photo.  You shouldn’t feel bad about having this natural hybrid named after you.  Everyone who sees our cantleyi in its glory wants a cutting of it.  
-Trent and Michelle
 
All spoken for? So we cantleyi have a can't?
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Cheers,

Joe
 
Hey Robs looking pretty good there!

Just a fantastic example of how proper growing conditions along with the right combination of parents can come together to make a really nice plant.

T
 
Holy color, Batman! That's sweet!

What was the bical parrentage? Red flush? Or was it a darker gracilis parrent? Wherever it gets the color, it's fantastic.
 
Natural hybrid, Dave. Probably came from Brunei. I would attribute the red and purple colors to a dark gracilis as a parent, maybe combined with a redder colored bicalcarata.
Who knows what could have come to the surface of the gene pool.
 
Love the color.
 
The ICPS Database says
N: ~[Nepenthes cantleyi {Hort.Westphal}]nom.nud.

So does that imply that Rob is naked, or just the name?
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  • #10
lol -Good one Bob!
 
  • #11
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 Amazing!  You're kidding us Trent, surely?!  Looks like a PhotoShop job.  It's N. bical x gracilis alright but the color?!  I'm going on a hunt around the lowland nursery tomorrow for the only decent colorful plant of this hybrid I have.  It's deep purple, almost brown, like the dark N. gracilis, nothiing like that beauty in your photo.

If I sent that plant out in the 80's, may I have it back please
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Say, may I have a cutting?...
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  • #12
Sure Rob, a cutting will be put aside for you. We'll need some help with the permits for exporting to Sri Lanka, when the time comes (it's not yet established).

No Photoshop tricks! That's the real color. Pitchers occasionally have green "feathering" starting at the base of the pitcher and flaring upward - that's a gracilis trait as you know. When the trap first opens the peristome is light green, but darkens with age and bright light.
We wonder if it were remade using superior, selected parents, the colors could be duplicated or even improved.
Glad you liked the photo.
T & M
 
  • #13
Doesn't look like one I'd name for someone I didn't like
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  • #14
Wow, it doesn't look anything like my N. cantelyi!

20030402-CP-N.xcantleyi-%20basal%20rosettes.jpg

20031029-CP-N.x%20cantleyi.jpg


Wish mine produced pitchers like that!

What kind of lighting is yours in? It looks like it must be pretty bright. Maybe i should give mine some sunbathing time?
 
  • #15
The lighting for our N. cantleyi when the photo was taken was not as bright as it should be because some huge bical leaves are giving it too much shade. Believe it or not, if given more light, the color will intensify. We are planning to find it a sunnier spot in our greenhouse, we'll see how dark it can really become. Even as the traps age the color never turns dull, there is always a brightness to it.
D muscipula, yours sure looks happy! Okay, so it's not a dark form, but all well grown Nepenthes are beautiful. We haven't seen very many N. cantleyi to compare, so thanks for the pics.
 
  • #16
.. but it says on the pot "keep refrigerated" High fat yoghurt can produce pitcher coloration like that too.
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D muscipula, that plant has pitcher coloration pretty much typical of most N. cantleyi in the wild, at least those in Brunei. The N. cantelyi that result from crosses with dark N. gracilis have purple pitchers whilst the red flush on T & M's plant would (I guess) be because the N. bicalcarata was red. Red N. bicalcarata are extremely uncommon in Brunei where I used to be, so I'm guessing that T & M's plant came from somerwhere else, perhaps Kalimantan where red N. bicalcarata is quite common.
 
  • #17
LOL Yeah, i find that, in a freak reversion to prehistoric highland ancestry, N. cantleyi spoils if not refrigerated.
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That's very informative, thank you Rob.

I'll tell you what, Trent. I'll send you a cutting of my N. cantleyi if you send me one of yours.
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It's one of only two hybrids i keep (being generally a species snob), in part because it is naturally occurring, and in part because it was the second Nepenthes i bought. At the time i hoped it would have the fangs of bicalcarata and the smaller growth habit of gracilis. Wishful thinking, but still a very nice and robust plant.
 
  • #18
Rob,
Very interesting. We thought ours came from Brunei because that's where you were. The only other N. cantleyi we've seen is the photo in Charles Clarke's book, which is plain olive green. You see... everyone wants a cutting of our dark purple form!

D muscipula,
You'll have to wait a long while for a cutting, but we'll keep you in mind for the next vine that gets cut.
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  • #19
I'm not ruling it out Trent. All the N. cantleyi I shipped in the 1980s were done from cuttings and I really cannot recall anything like the spectacular coloration of yours. Nearly all were just like D. muscipulas plant or a dark, dark purple but not red. Nice plant though, you should find it really easy from cuttings - 2 nodes.
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Bit surprised at Charlies photo of the green one - green is unusual too. He was in Brunei for years at the same time as me and saw various colorations but guess in those days he probably wasn't thinking about taking photos for a book.
 
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