Question

nepenthes from Lowes  

nepenthes from Lowes   I have a Nepenthes that I bought from a Lowes hardware store about a year ago.  I have transplanted it once into a larger pot using your Nepenthes soil mix that I ordered from your site in the past.  It's been doing great, grew very large, I had to trim it, and it even bloomed.

Recently I have noticed the stem turning brown on this plant and I am not sure why?  Can you please help after taking a look at the pictures?

I live in southern California, zone 9.  This plant is a shaded area in my yard outside, distilled water, and gets bright shade almost all day.  A few times it has gotten cold by our standards (45F for the low) in which I bring it inside.

Thank you.

Answer
Hi Cloud,

The brown stem you're seeing is the natural result of the plant aging.  Nepenthes are vines, so as they grow, they continue to elongate, and the green gets replaced with a bark.  On very old plants this is almost as thick as on a small tree.  Nepenthes can be cut back to maintain a bushier appearance.  Otherwise the vines get several feet long on most species.  This is very normal.

Good Growing!

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