Small pitchers on Nepenthes ventricosa

[sarracenia21]

For a while, I was kind of confused by the fact that my Nepenthes ventricosa does/did not have big pitchers. So far, the biggest pitcher (in the summer) is 1.5 inches. The plant leafspan is around 7.5 inches and is quite healthy. The temperatures are 70-85 degrees and it grows indoors. I am sure it gets enough sun and also enough moisture. Any suggestions?

 

[Dexenthes]

Hmm well there could be a few different things keeping the pitchers small.

One reason could be that there are mites or some other pest taking a slow toll on your plant. I've noticed this on my N. ventricosa before, and it has been very effective at keeping the pitchers really small. You can find mites by looking on the underside of the leaves or on developing pitchers, they may be little orange specs that you can hardly see.

Another reason the pitchers may be small is the substrate that the plant is potted in. If this Nepenthes is potted in any sort of standard soil or if it has ever been fertilized, the plant will not feel the need to pitcher profusely because it's getting the nutrients it needs out of the soil. This can also happen if the water you are using has significant amounts of minerals or otherwise.

Then there are light and humidity which are other reasons the pitchers may be small. Although you've said that your plant gets good moisture and sun, if substrate or pests check out then perhaps one of these variables is slightly off.

I have heard somewhere before that N. ventricosa in particular are not fond of heavy amounts of direct sunlight. I'm not sure if too much sun would lead to smaller pitchers, as I have never had the chance to give a plant too much sun. But I bet it is possible that if your sunlight is too high, and your humidity is a little lacking, maybe that is keeping pitchers small.

These are really just possibilities though. A detailed set of photos will provide more definite answers.

 

[sarracenia21]

any more possiblilities?

---------- Post added at 08:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:55 PM ----------

no mites

 

[Dexenthes]

Well then there is also the fact that the temperatures your mentioned are more or less lowlander temps and N. ventricosa is not a lowlander. That could be affecting pitcher size.

 

[UnstuckinTime]

How fresh is the media? How about pot size?

I have a N. ventricosa that is pitchering happily but the leaves are getting smaller and smaller, and it is probably because the media is sorta old and the pot, i know, is way too small. Once summer starts, I plan to repot it into a bigger container and put it outside with my larger Nepenthes.

Hope this helps!
-Cj

 

[nepguy]

My N. ventricosa gave me nothing but little pitchers until I gave it some coffee. The next pitcher was much bigger, and it continued to give me larger pitchers after that. I did give it a couple more treatments in subsequent months. I also found a "sweet spot" that it liked under some 6500K HO T5 lights. If the medium doesn't need changing and it doesn't yet need to be transplanted into a bigger pot, try coffee–regular old high-test, no cream, no sugar. The effect is immediate. I cut mine by half before I poured it through the pot.

Note the smaller pitchers under the plant in the pictures below. The bigger pitcher is after coffee.

Here is the same plant after a few months of coffee treatment:

I used to give all the plants a regular treatment every month, but now I fertilize with Maxsea, and I just use coffee when they need a boost.

 

[nepguy]

It might be a little late to add a comment, but I got to thinking about what you described and realized that there might be nothing wrong with your N. ventricosa at all. It's possible that it just hasn't broken out of the juvenile pitcher phase yet. If that's the case, assuming all other things are well, it should suddenly start producing larger-sized pitchers one day all on its own. In light of that my mention of my experiment with coffee on my N. ventricosa should have come with a caveat. Although I have seen a similar effect on other plants I have occasionally doused with coffee, it's possible this one might just have been thinking about "growing up" anyway when I appeared with the coffeepot.

 

[eou812]

how do you add the coffe to the soil to the pitchers on the leavrs what?

 

[nepguy]

Just pour leftover coffee right on the medium until it runs through the pot, just like when you water. Then flush the pot well with plain water the next time. Don't put it on the leaves or into the pitchers. I usually dilute the coffee by half with water, which has seemed to work well for me. There is no scientifically defined "dosage" and it won't hurt your plants to use it full strength.

It you are considering a regular program, my experience tells me that every 6 to 8 weeks is plenty. I don't do it as a regular practice anymore, but I still find that it's useful for perking up a plant that seems to be "stuck," using a few of applications 3 to 4 weeks apart.

It could be that a very weak coffee solution would benefit nepenthes in regular watering, just like weak solutions of fertilizer do. I haven't ever experimented with that, but I think it would be worth looking into it.

 

[Yinepu]

I'm getting my first Nepenthes ventricosa in a few days.. going to keep this in mind in case it ever needs a caffeine fix!

 

[richs]

That's interesting about using coffee - I'll have to keep that in mind! I've got a few neps, and I've done what Peter D'Amato recommends in his book which is to give them ( yeah, it's nasty! ) crushed snails...it does work! After a month, or so big pitchers on established plants began to pop off and you know I had to look down in there - just a mass of debris at the bottom!
A Warning...If you have orchids or any other tender plants nearby - once the snail wasn't crushed, and it managed to crawl OUT of the pitcher and land on some beautiful cattleya flowers..
So before you feed them, smack that sucker on the pavement to break the shell and it should sink like a rock! I know this sounds beyond nasty, but I'm telling you, and I've done that this summer with a big N. maxima superba I saved from a local nursery - the pitchers that followed were huge
Has anyone else done this or do I need to sign up for therapy?

 

[nepguy]

Richs - What kind of snails do you use? Do you get the out of the yard or do you buy them?

 

[richs]

The best kind available....those suckers you catch raiding your flower beds and gardens! Revenge is a dish best served wet!

 

[sarracenia21]

Sorry if I am a bit lae, but I have an update.

Firstly, thanks for all of the advice
I loved the part about the snails

The last two pitchers seem much more red, and have a more mature pitcher shape. The last pitcher it has made is 1 cm taller than the pitcher before it, and is more "plump".