N. lowii

[neps]

As some of you may know, I've had some trouble with upper
pitchers of N. lowii becoming distorted as they grow. However,
of late this seems to have improved greatly, though I'm still
not sure why. At present, I think it might be due to humidity
levels, or perhaps related to compost absorbancy. I know that
I'm not the only person who has seen this phenomenon,
however....

Anyway, here is a very recent photo of one of the normally
shaped pitchers my plant has produced of late. If you look
carefully at the operculum, you can see the initial appearance
of the well-known white exudate. After a couple of weeks,
a thick mat of this substance forms and clings to the hairs
there.

 

[The Griffin]

Looking at the pic, it's really hard to doubt the "bird toilet" theory.

Regards,

Joe

 

[arie]

great photo
one of the best upper pitcher I ever see
Arie

 

[GEORGE-CP]

Jeff, yes that is a great improvment from the last one you posted. what have you raised the humidity to? you stated that it might be realtied to humidity problem that you where having that it might of been to low.

 

[Pyro]

Neps,

The ABG has a plant that exhibits the same distorted pitchers you mentioned and it is growing right next to one that is normal. They were unable to explain it but thought it might just be a fluke.

 

[neps]

George, I have not measured the increase in the humidity where
I grow this species, so I cannot provide a quantitative
assessment of the change in this variable. Am still working
on trying to obtain a more complete understanding of this
problem.

Pyro, what you mention is very interesting! I will have to consult
the people I know at ABG. It seems reasonable to assume that
some clones of this species are more prone to upper pitcher
distortion than others.

 

[GEORGE-CP]

jeff,

let us know what the ABG has to say that will be very interesting to find out.

 

[Borneo]

It's a lovely pitcher anyway Jeff

I think that distortion of pitchers can be genetic in origin.  Here's a photo of a pitcher from one of my N. ampullaria.  There are about 15 pitchers on the plant and all have this deformation.  I'm wondering what to call it  

 

 

[monkeyman]

That's a really cool Amp. Although I see why it would be difficult to name.

 

[BigCarnivourKid]

Looks sort of like a clamshell, where the two halves close together

.

 

[Vagabond]

Very pretty. Though it might have more difficulty trapping insects then the normal type

Andrew

 

[Guest]

Speaking of clamshells (a bit off topic though) I once saw this flower that was shaped exactly like a clam shell. It was very interesting and intreging.

 

[nepenthes gracilis]

That's quite unique Rob!

N. ampullaria "baby teeth"

 

[GEORGE-CP]

how about N.amp.(pucker lips) or (wet lips)

 

[nepenthes gracilis]

N. ampullaria "kiss of death"

 

[neps]

Rob,

I'm a little behind on this thread, but want to mention that one of my amps produced a pitcher last year which was virtually identical to the one in the image you posted. At the time, conditions in my greenhouse were rather warm, and humidity was probably a bit lower than normal. Moreover, the plant has not produced any such pitchers since. So, I am inclined to think that, at least in the case of my plant, the appearance of such a distorted pitcher was a consequence of environmental conditions.

Just a suggestion, but in the interest of testing such a hypothesis with your plant, it might be interesting to send some cuttings to other growers and see if pitchers subsequently produced are similarly distorted.

 

[schloaty]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">it might be interesting to send some cuttings to other growers and see if pitchers subsequently produced are similarly distorted. [/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>

Tryin' to score a free plant, eh?

j/k

Cool Looking Amp pitcher.
How about N. Ampullaria "Caves"

Kinda reminds me of stalagtites and stalagmites....

 

[neps]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Tryin' to score a free plant, eh?

j/k
[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>

Actually, in all seriousness, no. I have plenty of plants. It's just an idea, and since N. ampullaria is a pretty easy species to cultivate, and not as slow-growing as some, it would seem a good candidate for such experimentation.

 

[The Griffin]

If it's not environmental, I would call it N. ampullaria "Monstrous Maw", as it looks like a pointy-teethed mouth.
Trapping capabilities would be more limited, and I thought about N. ampullaria "Anarexic", but that is poor taste. I have poor taste, but the rest of the free world doesn't.

Regards,

Joe

 

[GEORGE-CP]

Jeff, you mentioned that the N.amp. you have produced the same kind of pitcher that Rob, posted a picture of. is it the same kind of N.amp. or ?