Question
alata
Hello everyone, I have noticed that the sarracenia alata I purchased this year puts up pitchers that don't seem to last long, only a couple weeks. It put up a nice healthy crop of pitchers, but they soon started to turn brown and die off. It's sent up new pitchers since then, but I wasn't sure if this was normal or not. How long do sarracenia pitchers usually last? I feel like the ones on some of my plants don't seem to last too long. Also, I've noticed little red spots on the plant, is this something to be concerned about? Thanks.
AnswerThis is a southern species, and it prefers a long growing season and warm summer temperatures. At our nursery in Oregon, we typically see this species perk up in late August and September. It's at this time we see it's best pitchers of the season. This is normal when growing this plant where the growing season is relatively short.
Give your location, it's just a matter of being patient and waiting for their peak season. From your photo, I see a couple pitchers that look very typical for this time of the year. It already looks like it's producing pitchers that are characteristic for late summer. The early season pitchers will die off, and that's normal. You can cut them off if you can't stand looking at them. It won't harm the plant to do so. The crop of late season pitchers will last until frost.
Good growing!
Jacob Farin
