Question
     Hello Christopher,
How would you grow n. lowii near Augusta, Georgia.
Thanks for any answer,
         loreen  

Answer
Hello Loreen,

You could keep this plant as a houseplant where you live. It is a tropical, so winter would be too harsh in most of North America for most tropicals. Keep it at normal household temperatures of about 70 and make sure the plant has been pre-adapted to lower humidity. Most Nepenthes are grown in higher than 70 percent humidity and even a 10 or 20 percent drop would have drastic effects on the plant, causing it to stop pitcher production for several weeks or even months. If you obtain the plant from a place that did not pre-adapt it, you can do so yourself with a clear plastic bag over the plant. Punch half a dozen 1/4 inch holes in the bag every three days until it no longer holds in humidity. Generally you can take the bag off after two or three weeks. By that time, the plant should be more well adapted to your household humidity.

Keep the plant in a morning or south facing window where it can get several hours of sunlight and plenty of ambient light all day. If the plant starts loosing color and having trouble making pitchers, try increasing the intensity of light by adding some artificial lights like florescent 40 watt tubes of the cool white variety over the plant about 6-8 inches and on for about 12-16 hours a day.

Make sure any soil you use is composed of sphagnum peat moss, coconut husk and orchid bark in 1/3 mixture for each substance. You can alternatively use two parts orchid bark to one part sphagnum peat moss. Make sure that none of the mix has any fertilizers or additives as those would harm or kill your plant. Similarly, only use distilled, reverse osmosis, or rain water for your Nepenthes and water it like a regular house plant every 3 or 4 days. Do not leave large quantities of water in a tray under the pot for more than a day or two at a time. Too much standing water near the roots of Nepenthes can result in root rot. Just keep the soil always moist, but never waterlogged or allowed to dry.


Christopher