Question

White patches  

Wilted Pitcher Top   Dear Sarracenia Northwest,

I recently received a Leuco from you guys, and it arrived in wonderful condition. I have followed all of your directions as far as sunlight and watering to ensure that it has the best growing conditions . I have a pot of Venus Flytraps that have been growing extremely well for years, so I'm not a novice grower by any means, and have the sarracenia right next to it on my patio, where it get 8+ hours of direct sun every single day. In the last 4ish days the leaves have developed white patches, which have now caused the two pitchers that were up to wilt and start turning brown from the top of the pitcher. I have no idea what it is, there are no visible pests on the plants, and like I said I have followed everything else to the T. I'm attaching a couple of images so that hopefully you can give me an idea of what I'm dealing with and if it's anything I should be concerned with.

Thank you,

John

Answer
Hi John,

The pictures have quite a bit of glare so it's hard to see the patches on the leaves.  It's nothing I've ever seen on Sarracenia, but it looks like it could be something like a leaf miner that is a small worm that eats from the inside of the leaf.  It might also be fungal.

What I recommend trying is spray the plant with Bayer 3 in 1.  The reason I'm recommending this specific product is that it's a systemic insecticide and fungicide. It's also very easy to find at garden centers.  Follow the directions on the bottle for application.  Spray both the leaves and rhizome crown, and even a little in the pitcher.  Watch the new growth and see if the problem disappears.  Let me know how it goes.

If you use this product in the future on other plants avoid spraying when they are in bloom, or about to bloom.  It's very toxic to Honey Bees.

Good Growing!

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