I'm a terrible human being...

[MaggieRae]

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pretty... Now I really want to go find some.

 

[silkiechicken]

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I didn't know they were out here! I need to check them out. Eugene is just an hour south.

 

[scbatz33]

It's technically not a carnivorous plant, but it has impaled many a fly and stink bug. It's called a "Crown of Thorns" or "Christ Plant". Flowers with these lovely pink and red tiny flowers.

 

[dacjohns]

Key West Chick,

Very nice.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Those are some nice pitcher plants, Key West!

Here are a couple shots I took while at a citrus conference in South Carolina last year.

Pitchers and sundews have always been my favorites. I used to be into this sort of thing when I was a boy.

The natural history museum in Gainesville has a model of a pitcher plant big enough to crawl into. Talk about a bugs eye view!

 

[dacjohns]

You guys are ruining what I have heard about raising bog plants. Love it.

 

[key west chick]

Most people think that pitcher plants come from the deep dark jungles. That couldnt be further from the truth. Most pitcher plants thrive in hot, humid, full sun places. Many are native to areas of Fla, Ga and the Carolinas. They are found in wet savannas and wetlands that get lots of sun. Some are even found in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, New Jersey and the Great Lakes. They all thrive in nutrient poor soil that remains wet to damp year round. The soils are a sandy peat mixture. Mine grow in a mixture of sand, perlite and sphagnum peat moss. I always use rain water ONLY when it gets to dry in the summer and I need to add water to it. The minerals in tap water is a no-no. In the late fall, they go dormant. They need a few months of cold weather. In the very early spring, I cut back the old pitchers to make way for the new growth. Flowers come out in the spring, followed by the new pitchers. If you have the proper weather and sun, they are very easy to grow.

 

[bantamamba]

Aw, how come it took me so long to find this thread?

Most species of highland pitchers in particular and very easy to grow and adapt well to different environments, inside or outside. At the moment I keep mine on the window sill (as it favours impartial sunlight) and mist the leaves (not necessary, but it does seem to appreciate it), and occasional water with the distilled stuff when the moistness begins to fade. Spot does a good job catching it's own food, as well.

I haven't any VFTs but I would love to give them a shot...although, I do admit to being weary about taking on one of the Death Cube inhabitants from Home Depot and some of the other nurseries around here...

BEAUTIFUL plants, by the way.