Question

Planter filled with wa  

Scarlett belle   Hello Sarracenia Northwest,

About a month ago I bought a pond system for my yard. After talking with the store owner he offered me some plants I saw floating in his pond. He gave me three plants (missing care/name tags) , one I believe is called a parrots feather and the other two I knew were some type of sarracenia. After some internet research I determined they were 2 scarlet belle specimens. The store owner told me to put them in my pond with water up to the top of the pot, but something came up and the pond will not be finished for sometime. So in the meantime I filled up an old window ledge planter without holes and filled it with water and put the plants inside. The scarlet Belles don't seem to be doing too well, I'm not sure if they are going dormant (I got them in late aug it is now early oct). I also read online that they should be in 1:1 peat and perlite instead of water, is this true and what would be the best for my plants. They are currently getting about 3 hours of sun a day because I can not put them in full sun because my dog will drink the water,( I am in Vancouver BC ). Ultimately I would like to put them in this big red pot I have, with a peat and perlite mix, in full sun. I am not sure what would be best for them, Please help:)


Ps.

I want to say a big thanks to Jeff Dallas for helping me save my Venus Flytrap after I was misguided. Thanks Jeff us as you had said the traps have all grown back and the plant is stronger than when I got it :)!!!!!!

Answer
Hi Jay,

There are situations where you can grow Sarracenia semi-aquatically such as floating island planters, but otherwise they are treated like any other Sarracenia.  Here's examples of floating island planters:  http://www.marylandaquatic.com/Retail/hgcollection.cfm?cn=Pond%20Rafts&CatID=Flo  Basic care:  50/50 peat to perlite or clean sand, pot standing in about 1 inch of water, full sun exposure.  We advise against keeping the pots fully submerged in water since that can lead to rot issues.  In Vancouver they can spend 90% of the winter outside, but would need protection during our occasional hard freezes in the Northwest.  Here's more details:  http://www.growcarnivorousplants.com/Articles.asp?ID=258

Your plants should be going dormant now.  That is part of why they may be declining in appearance some.  The same would be true of your Flytrap.

Glad the Flytrap pulled through.  That's what I like to hear!

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.growcarnivorousplants.com