Worried bout my cephalotus

[Sharoman]

I'v purchased a young cephalotus about 5 months ago from a well trusted shop iv been buying from for about 2-3 years.
When I got it home I immediately re-planted it into a mixture of 1/3 peat, 1/3 perlite and 1/3 silica quartz where it's been ever since.
For the 1st three months it was doing just fine and iv been watering it (using distilled water) about twice a week to make sure the medium stays moist and that the tray underneath stays filled with some degree of water (most of the time).
But about one and a half months ago I left on a month long trip to Nepal and entrusted the care of my plants to my uncle (which killed off my Drosera aliciae) and from the looks of it my cephalotus isn’t doing so well either and im worried they're not long for this world…
Here's a picture I took bout 4 months ago and another I took today.


4 months ago:
http://s1240.photobucket.com/user/Maidanchik/media/Carnivorous Plants/P1180021.jpg.html

the one i took today:
http://s1240.photobucket.com/user/Maidanchik/media/Carnivorous Plants/P4200007.jpg.html?sort=3&o=3

A friend of mine (which didn’t see the pictures yet) says the roots might be rotting away due to over watering…
What do you guys think?

 

[Dave S.]

I would let your ceph dry out a bit before watering again. Are you getting water in the crown of the plant? A trick I use to water cephs is to water around the edges of the pot to avoid water getting on the plant itself. Your plant does not look too bad in my view; the colors are nice. It looks like a couple of the older pitchers/pitcher lids have dried out. I have one that looks similar to yours, and the new pitchers look good. How are the newest pitchers looking?

 

[corky]

well it aint a gonna yet,i agree to let the plant dry out,but i would water from the bottom and let the tray stand empty for a day or two between waterings,they are tougher plants than most think and i have had plants come back from the roots

 

[Sharoman]

1st off i wanted to say thanks for all the useful information.
I did used to water the plant from the top and even if it was indirectly i probably did manage to get some water in the pitchers from time to time.
I defiantly figured by now (from reading your posts) that i should be watering the tray and not the pot and ill have to make sure i don't over water it, and wait a few days or even allow the tray to dry out before watering again.
Im thinking twice a week will be enough to keep it wet enough...

 

[Jcal]

A good way to test it is the feel the weight of the pot. It takes alittle time get the feel of it but I can tell if I need to water by how light the pots are. I water alittle differently but would suggest the advise above.