Question
I have 2 serrecenia purpereas now and i work in a store
that sells them in death cubes lol. And i have seen them in
all shapes and sizes. And now i am curious how they grow
(im new to this and ive only owned them already grown). The
one i have had for a few months has 1 to 2 inch pitchers
that are kinda thick (silver dollar ish) and the new one i
just bough is like 4 inches high but tinsy thickness, less
circumference than a dime. When they grow do they start
skinny and get tall and then stop growing up and start
growing out, or some other order. Also in a different death
cube (not one i bought) i noticed that some of the leaves
werent relly pitchers i dont think, they had tall stalks
that started to get the flap halfway up, but the flap didnt
open it was flat and cresenty. Can you explain all this.
Your the man

Answer
Hello Matt,

Those death cubes are aptly named for the simple reason that such stores tend to make more money off the returning customers buying new plants to replace the ones that died due to the action of the death cube. The death cubes tend to inhibit growth in carnivorous plants and keep them from receiving proper light. On top of that, the enclosed space tends to encourage mold to grow on floppy weak growth that occurs in such circumstances. Do your customers and these interesting and almost endangered plants (yes in their natural habitats some may be starting to die off due to the actions of humans building condos and the like) a favor and get the plants out of the death cubes gradually by opening each a fraction of an inch every 3 days for the next two weeks until all the cubes are acclimated to normal humidity, then get them off so the plants can grow normally and get full sun that they need.

It sounds to me like you have sevaral different species of Sarracenias to me. There are up to 9-13 (according to who you ask) distinct species of these plants that all grow differently. The Purple pitcher plant grows squat, wide pitchers and the plant can get up to a foot wide and 8 inches or so tall. Other species grow tall, thin pitchers that can get 1 1/2 feet to 3 feet tall according to species and will grow straight up, looking like a horn with a hood over the top.

It sounds like the Death Cube is already doing its job of killing the store's stock of plants as the plants you described seem to be growing deformed and weak leaves seeking light. When pitcher plants grow thin, tall leaves with deformed flaps they are reacting to low light conditions that will eventually kill the plants. The only cure is to get them out of the Death Cubes soon and get them into full, direct sunlight so they can grow normally. Sarracenias and Venus Flytraps are full sun plants like garden plants and are North American plants, not tropicals. They go dormant in winter like many temperate plants do.

Christopher