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Rare Nepenthes Seed Question

BioZest

BioZest

zesty.
Hi Guys. I have some rare nepenthes seeds from user, n. bicalcarata. By rare I mean N. Jamban, N. Aristolochiodes and N. Intermis. I really want them to grow successfully and was wondering if my setup was correct for this situation. I have a five gallon terrarium in my basement that is fairly humid and about 55˚F constantly. It gets an artificial light photoperiod of about 12 hours a day. The seeds are sowed on hand chopped New Zealand sphagnum moss. I grow H. minor and cephs in this tank. Is this a good setup for these seeds???? also what is the average time of germination for these species?

here's a pic of the setup:
DSC00365_zpsb06ff3b5.jpg


thanks guys!
 
I have had quicker germination when I gave my seeds warmer temps, although the time it takes for germination can take as little as a week to a whole year.
 
Way too cold for Nepenthes seeds. Even highlander seeds germinate best in the mid 70's to low 80's.
 
Yeah, you will need day temps in the upper 70's at least to get em to germinate.
 
hmmm... do you think I could heat the tank, but continue growing the heli and ceph in the same tank?
 
Why dont you cover the seed pots in saran wrap and put them in a warmer place?
 
@heli seems like a good idea; will do :)
 
Cthulhu138 said:
Way too cold for Nepenthes seeds. Even highlander seeds germinate best in the mid 70's to low 80's.
Click to expand...

Exo said:
Yeah, you will need day temps in the upper 70's at least to get em to germinate.
Click to expand...



I beg to differ. I rarely allow either my seeds in compost or those in vitro to exceed 20˚ C for any extended period of time; and the high temperatures are often associated with "sudden death" in seedlings . . .
 
Last edited:
hmm seems to be a bit of a controversy here...
:eek:
 
  • #10
I've had luck with Nepenthes seeds in relatively high temps and humidity (when I was in NM I had a 10-gallon terrarium with two 25-watt CFL bulbs inside to germinate and grow Nepenthes, Byblis, and Drosera seeds, even during 80-degree-Fahrenheit summer days in the house), but I had the most luck with the lowland/intermediate species and hybrids. I don't have much experience with rarer highland seeds, but consistent temps of 55 degrees Fahrenheit does sound a bit too low. Raising day temps a bit couldn't hurt...

-Jimmy
 
  • #11
Ok so I think I'm going to relocate the seeds from the basement and put some super high tech humidity conditioners over the tops of the pots (aka. plastic cups + saran wrap:)) and find a way to keep them at 60-70˚F... sounds good! thanks guys!
 
  • #12
Save for the inermis, I have had very good success so far with placing the same kinds of seeds in temps of about 75-85 degrees F during the day, and dropping the temps to 55 F at night, and they were sown on a mix of 1:1 LFS/perlite. I haven't tried germinating N. inermis, but I would assume it would like the same conditions as the other two.
 
  • #13
Sounds good! Just watch out for fungus attacks - chances increase for that if the air is too humid and gets too little circulation.

Good luck!

-Jimmy
 
  • #14
uh hmm general observation. Your light source looks kind of weak based on the photo. Personally I think I would be more concerned about the Cephalotus sitting in such a cold wet environment.
 
  • #15
I sow my Nepenthes seeds alongside my adult plants, so they experience the exact same temperatures as the parent plants. I get plenty of germination. I think it is somewhat misleading to state that Highland Nepenthes MUST have warm temps to germinate, since this is not how it works in their habitat.
 
  • #16
I use the warm temps for germination purposes only. It gives them a nice little kick start. Once the seedlings get their 1st pitchers they're potted up and moved to normal highland conditions. I only have problems with sudden death of seedlings if the seeds were very old to begin with.
 
  • #17
Ok guys I've decided to put a reptile heating pad under the nep seeds and turn it on during the day. I've moved the Ceph and the heli towards the other side of the tank so that they can have a slightly cooler temp. than the seeds. I also moved a temperature/humidity sensor into the the tank on a plastic cup so that it doesn't get any *more* water damage.

here's an updated picture of the setup:
DSC00372_zpsa1799243.jpg

sorry about the back image quality...not amazing lighting in the basement:blush:

also:

uh hmm general observation. Your light source looks kind of weak based on the photo. Personally I think I would be more concerned about the Cephalotus sitting in such a cold wet environment.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't really call this environment cold, and the humidity level inside the tank is not too high. I've been growing cephs in similar conditions and they've done very well in the past. As for the lighting, I know it is pretty weak, but it's all I have to work with right now; I'm going to be looking in to some higher quality lights soon.


-please give feedback on this setup. I will update with the day/night temps and humidity levels.

thanks guys! :-D
 
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