Based on a request over in Jim's thread, but not wanting to hijack it any more than I already have...
Several years ago, following elgecko's lead, I stuck a pot of U. longifolia over a jar of water & allowed it to grow. The longifolia loved it but I didn't. U. longifolia bladders are very small & the curved jar distorted any pics I attempted.
So, I then made several mini-tanks for the 6x6x6 net pots that are available.
..... and I ran out of initiative ..... until a few months ago.
As an experiment that I knew would fail, two years ago, I brought an established humbo up from the basement & plopped it on my windowsill - where it bloomed this year & last (for the 1st times) - completely ignoring my gloom & doom thoughts that a tepui plant couldn't ever survive the dry winter air & overwhelming summer heat. Based on this, I finally planted a small piece of U. humboldtii into a net pot & gave it it's own mini display tank. To keep algae growth down, I covered the tank with aluminum foil. A few months go by and the humbo is growing much better than I expected but so has one of it's companions on the windowsill; N. veitchii
The original humbo is on the left (soon off to it's new owner), the veitchii is everywhere & the newer humbo is on the right. Once the humbo on the left departs, I'll try and rearrange things so the veitchii doesn't so overwhelm the humbo enclosure.
Yesterday, I went out and captured 15-20 mosquito larvae from some water dishes under Sarracenia pots (that obviously haven't dried out in a while) & introduced them to the humbo tank. A few minutes ago, I shined a small flashlight into my 'viewing port' (also known as a slit in the aluminum foil) showing a general view of the bladders
.... a little closer view
.... and naturally, behind the largest submerged rolon, was a bladder filled with one larvae that won't grow to be an adult and tapping my veins
There are a few more that appear to have some occupants but I can't get the camera to focus on them...
Several years ago, following elgecko's lead, I stuck a pot of U. longifolia over a jar of water & allowed it to grow. The longifolia loved it but I didn't. U. longifolia bladders are very small & the curved jar distorted any pics I attempted.
So, I then made several mini-tanks for the 6x6x6 net pots that are available.
..... and I ran out of initiative ..... until a few months ago.
As an experiment that I knew would fail, two years ago, I brought an established humbo up from the basement & plopped it on my windowsill - where it bloomed this year & last (for the 1st times) - completely ignoring my gloom & doom thoughts that a tepui plant couldn't ever survive the dry winter air & overwhelming summer heat. Based on this, I finally planted a small piece of U. humboldtii into a net pot & gave it it's own mini display tank. To keep algae growth down, I covered the tank with aluminum foil. A few months go by and the humbo is growing much better than I expected but so has one of it's companions on the windowsill; N. veitchii
The original humbo is on the left (soon off to it's new owner), the veitchii is everywhere & the newer humbo is on the right. Once the humbo on the left departs, I'll try and rearrange things so the veitchii doesn't so overwhelm the humbo enclosure.
Yesterday, I went out and captured 15-20 mosquito larvae from some water dishes under Sarracenia pots (that obviously haven't dried out in a while) & introduced them to the humbo tank. A few minutes ago, I shined a small flashlight into my 'viewing port' (also known as a slit in the aluminum foil) showing a general view of the bladders
.... a little closer view
.... and naturally, behind the largest submerged rolon, was a bladder filled with one larvae that won't grow to be an adult and tapping my veins
There are a few more that appear to have some occupants but I can't get the camera to focus on them...
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