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The Great Experiment

  • #81
rampuppy: how are the plants doing? give us the lowdown
 
  • #82
I'm startin' to suspect his plants got really vigorous and ate him..
 
  • #83
Has this post been forgotten? Has rampuppy left? I think this topic could be extremly usefull as plants begin to finish dormancy.
 
  • #84
Hi All!!
I am new to this site but couldn't help adding to this thread...
I have a very spindly leucophylla which because of this, doesn't catch many bugs. It gets plently of light and water and is healthy otherwise, and sending up new pitchers. Would whole milk increase the width of the traps, or just the height? Any ideas? thanks, Mikala.
 
  • #85
Hi Mikala and welcome to our forums! You're heading into Fall right now, correct? How has this plant been doing for you during the Summer? how long have you had it? Have you put it through dormancy?

I wish I could answer your question, but I haven't tried milk, cheese or egg yet. I am interested in the answer since mine will be coming out of dormany soon.
 
  • #86
Hi Mikala

I wouldn't recommend using milk for the upright species since there's a high chance bacteria will get to work on the unnatural food and rot the trap.

Where are you keeping your leucophylla? Spindly pitchers can be due to lack of light. Leucos really need maximum light exposure, with plenty of direct sun.
 
  • #87
So, what's the consensus on the best food?

Whey protein isolate? Koi pellets? Fish flakes? Skim milk?

Fresh or dehydrated insects?
 
  • #88
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Alvin Meister @ Mar. 07 2005,5:41)]I wouldn't recommend using milk for the upright species since there's a high chance bacteria will get to work on the unnatural food and rot the trap.
Why is this not a risk with decumbent species? Are the harmful bacteria anaerobic?
 
  • #89
Well I've never seen a purpurea pitcher rot, so I assume the bacteria can't live in the water?
 
  • #90
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Alvin Meister @ Mar. 08 2005,4:33)]Well I've never seen a purpurea pitcher rot, so I assume the bacteria can't live in the water?
So, will upright species not rot if the milk is diluted?
 
  • #91
'ello all.
i'm also late in joining this thread and wish to test out this experament myself. but, i have to put a spin on things, has anyone tested the diffrent between organic milk and conventional? organic whole milk vs. conventional whole milk, and so on and so forth?
-julie
 
  • #92
Oh... here's a thought... We have discussed the use of milk, cheese, and egg. How about cheesecake and have the best of all worlds?
biggrin.gif
 
  • #93
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]So, will upright species not rot if the milk is diluted?

I expect it still will as the milk is open to the air and will go sour. I think souring of milk is caused by bacteria getting to work on it.
 
  • #94
Wow this post is really active!!
Alvin & Jimscott, I have had this plant since last summer but I let it get a little too dry over winter and it is only just bouncing back now with the secondary growth. it is just inside a sunny window where my purp is a lovely deep red and two flava's are doing ok. The tips of the pitchers are colouring and new shoots are still coming up (about 4 at last count) but they are all skinnier than a pencil, and it had only caught maybe 1 small fly this season.
just thought maybe it would give it a good energy boost before it has to go into dormancy (yes it is autumn here).
Thanks!! any idea's what might help?
Mikala.
 
  • #95
by the way, that was about my leucophylla
smile.gif
 
  • #96
I'm no expert, but is it possible that the gradually reducing photoperiod in Southern Hemisphere is partially responsible for this?
 
  • #97
SOMEONE really brought this back from de grave
 
  • #98
My 'trialling' of whole milk.
Ok, well I put some whole milk into my ceph, purp, purp/alata? cross, and one of my Flava. just to see how it would go. I know I got told not to use in upright pitchers, which is why I only put some in my flava (I have two so can handle one loss) and spare my leucophylla until I'm sure it will work.
The purp/alata? hybrid I figured may be able to handle it, we'll see how that goes, I also have another version (I think) of that already too.
Will keep u posted....
Mikala.
 
  • #99
Alright, I probably posted in here before, but I'm too lazy to rummage through the last 9 pages, and The Daily Show's on in 5 minutes, so...

Once a month I give both my purpurea and my minor a drop of whole milk in one or two pitchers, and it's always done good for both of them. No rotting. Same with the ventricosa. I also give my primuliflora and adelaes a drop of milk every month, which also works well.. I used to use cheese for those two species, and it always worked well, but for some unknown reason, my current primuliflora takes a long time to digest the cheese, and the leaf usually rots, and with the adelae, it doesn't even try to digest it. It used to work perfectly, but for some reason, my current small hoard of dew-producing plants no longer likes cheese, so I resorted to milk, which works as well as cheese used to.
 
  • #100
Very good information contained throughout this thread.
 
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