early May foray

I went to see some carnivorous plants in the wild. It was really fun! There were waterfalls and great views. I saw 4 different carnivorous plants and a bog orchid!

Click “FS” in the lower right hand corner of the slideshow for full screen viewing. Enjoy.

20th of April update

I’m growing some new plants.  Some of them will be ready for new homes this fall.  Its never too early to get excited about them!  Enjoy the photos.  Happy growing, Josh.

First week of April photos

Hey Folks!

My plants are waking up. I love spring!

Spring is near!

In warmer climates native carnivorous plants begin to break dormancy in early March.  Flowers and leaves may emerge a month later in cooler climates.  If you haven’t trimmed your pitcher plants’ old leaves now is the time; it is easier before there are new leaves.

Sarracenia leucophylla “tarnok” flowers are beginning to open in the greenhouse.  We simulate an early spring.  The plants break dormancy a few months early so they will look good for the spring festivals!

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Winter Care

Whether you grow your North American carnivorous plants in pots or in your yard, winter care is easy.  When they’re in your bog garden, most North American pitcher plants will survive brief periods near zero degrees Fahrenheit .  Venus flytrap and sundew need pine needle mulch to over-winter.  If you’re growing them in a dish garden protect them if it gets below 20 degrees Fahrenheit.Winter care for a BOG GARDEN:   If the weather forecast is calling for sub zero temperatures (in the negatives), then put six inches of pine needles on your bog garden.  A layer of pine needles is a good idea anyway; it holds in the moisture during the summer!

Dish garden winter care is easy too:   If the forecast calls for temperatures below 20 degrees then move your pot to a protected location.  A sunny spot out of the wind is ideal if you are in zone 7 or warmer.  A garage or cool sunny windowsill works too.  If you bring it in the house just make sure your pitcher plants aren’t growing leaves in the winter; they need to rest for a few months!

If you have specific questions, check out the MINI-ARTICLES about winter care.

What is a hard winter?

A question that often comes up is, “How hard was last winter?”  It depends on who’s asking!  For us humans a hard winter is measured by the number of days we were stuck at our houses without power.  Or how slushy the roads were.

North American carnivorous plants are at or below ground level when they are dormant.  The measure of a hard winter for these plants is ground temperature!  Ground temperature changes much more slowly than air temperature.  Factors like yesterday’s air temperature, cloud cover, and amount of snow on the ground all affect the temperature of your bog garden.  Surprisingly, snow on the ground is an insulator!

Here is a forecast for my house 2nd week in February.  My plants and I live in the mountains of North Carolina.  This  winter storm won’t bother the North American pitcher plants in my flower bed:

Check out a COLD-HARDINESS MAP if you’re curious about your house.  If you live in zone 6 then it is likely you will need to put 6 inches of pine needles on your bog garden.

If you’re curious about how much warmer your winter has gotten in the last few decades check out this ANIMATED MAP.

Happy gardening!   Josh

My June trip to a bog

Last June I went to see some pitcher plants and sundew in the wild.  It was really fun to explore the place with my dog and dream about buying the place.  Its only 1.5 million.  During the afternoon of wandering around I saw a lot of beauty, a few disheartening things and some really interesting stuff I’ve never seen.  Enjoy the slideshow, I posted 70 pictures!

In the photos of the pond note the damage from weedeater and goose poop.  The manicured lawn encourages canada geese which in turn kill the sphagnum and carnivorous plants.  As a group, the plants were healthy especially considering they’re living in a sub development!

There were a few surprises too.  I was amazed at how much shade the purple pitcher plant can tolerate.  The upright pitcher plants definitely don’t do well in part sun though.   The one plant I found was on its last legs.  Also of interest is a purple pitcher plant leaf with a flesh fly maggot swimming around eating bugs.  Tasty!

CP Connection West Virginia

In November I went to West Virginia to do a little work at our second location.  Its a small “hot house” run by my parents!  This is where we propagate the cape sundew and forking sundew.  We also produce the first venus flytrap of the year in West Virginia.

In addition to the forking sundew we’ve offered in the past, this year we’re trying a new forking sundew.  Its leaves are 6 inches long and fork once.  It grows readily from seed and is called Drosera binata “small red form”.  We’re also growing an “all red” variety of cape sundew.  You can check it all out in the slide show below.

Time to cut back pitcher plant leaves

Winter is here!  One of the things I like to do in December is clean the plants up a little.  Cutting back pitcher plant leaves is optional, but it makes them look better and is a preventative for disease.

When the leaves turn brown its a good time to do a little trimming.  Carefully cut where they attach to the rhizome.  But be careful, don’t cut the growth point off!

I usually toss the leaves in my garden or compost pile, they still have a bit of natural fertilizer from the summer.    And by fertilizer I mean bug gut fertilizer!

Josh