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yikes! nep outgrowing terrarium

Hi all. I'd appreciate some suggestions on this one.

I have a 30G terrarium with several neps, and one of my neps, a Sanguinea, is beginning to outgrow it. The tip of the newest leaf is almost touching the ceiling. It's obvious that it'll have to be taken out soon, but how should I go about this? My place is not that humid (40-50%) so will I kill it if I take it out and care for it like a regular houseplant, even with frequent misting? Are N. Sanguineas tolerant to sudden changes in environment?

I've seen some people keeping the bottom half of the plant in the terrarium and let the top protrude outside, but for me that's not an option based on the way I built my canopy (should've had more forethought). Am I doomed?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Leo
 
Personally I would cut the top off. Leave the bottom in there to regrow and make a nice new plant. Once the top has rooted you could try growing it as a windowsill plant.

Sanguinea can be grown in a house but you may find that it will not pitcher well if your humidity is low on a steady basis.

Removing the plant from the terrarium and placing it directly in a window will certainly shock it drastically. If you do decide to take it out of the terrarium, place it in a clear plastic bag in bright indirect light. Slowly acclimate it to your house conditions. Chances are you will lose existing pitchers, but new growth will be more adjusted to the dryer conditions.
Tony
 
You might have to build yourself a larger enclosure (It's real easy to build one out of 2x4s and plastic drop cloth from the hardware store) or even build a fancy one from waterproof fiberglass and a storm window or sliding shower door.
You could also buy a 2nd 30 gallon tank and turn it upside down and set it atop the 1st one (so they sit open end to open end) so you'd have a double-decker 30 gallon terrarium-your canopy would fit being the same size tank. The only problem with this method is removing the top tank to access the plants.
You could also try it in your house with a humidifier running next to the window so the humidity stays as high as possible.
 
I found that I suck at wielding powertools (building the canopy was a major endeavor on my part - but thanks Josh, it was your design, and it works well), so I might want to stick with Tony's suggestion...

If I were to cut the top portion of the plant, can I just stick it into LF sphagnum, with maybe a little Rootone or something, and expect it to establish by itself? Do I need to do anything special to the bottom half, or just leave it be?

Thanks much.
 
If you cut the top off, try and leave at least a couple healthy leaves on the bottom portion. It will do fine and make new growth.

The top piece can be dipped in rooting powder and carefully planted in moist LFS. You can trim the leaves if they are too hard to handle. Place the potted cutting into a big clear bag and keep in a bright indirect light spot with intermediate temps and it will root in a month or two. If the top portion is really long you can cut that into more than one piece if you like.
Tony
 
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