Question
QUESTION: Hi. I have a few Cape Sundews under 2 - 40 watt florescent tubes. They are 6
inches away fron the light.  They are in 50 peat/50 perilite mix. One is in a
two inch pot ( very tiny sundew- broke off the mother plant) The other two
are in 3 and 4 inch pots.  I water them using distilled water and the tray
method once or twice a week.  I usually give the 4 inch pot an inch or so of
water once a week or twice.  Usually the 3 and 4 inch pots are watered only
once a week.

I cannot seem to get new leaves from them.  They also have not produced
dew for a while now. They grow very slowly.  It takes forever for them to grow
one leaf that is completely covered with hair. The tips of new growth keep
turning yellow and then eventually the tips become brown.  Do you know why
this is happening? I thought a few things why this may be happening..

UNDERWATERING  Do you think I am keeping them too dry?   What would be
a sign of underwatering? They are not wilting, though.  My house is very
drafty and cold most of the time.  I keep my heat at 63-64 degrees. I don't
want them to rot, so i try not to give them alot of water at a time.  Are they
prone to rot like venuses flytraps? Some of my vensues have a little rot on the
rhizomes.  They are in the same size pots.

CHANGE IN TEMP/ HUMIDITY Another thought I had why this is happening is
perhaps change in temp or humidity? My roomate puts a portable heater on
in the kitchen on the weekends.  The kitchen is in the room next to where my
plants are.  Is it possible that the heater is causing this to happen to them?
Some of the leaves curl up when my roomate has the heater on.  I also believe
the new leaves turns yellow when the heater is on.

I was thinking that maybe I should put plastic wrap over the pots to maintain
a constant temp and humidity for them.  I have baby capes which I keep
covered in plastic wrap.  They are doing well and have dew on them.  What do
you think? Thank you


ANSWER: Hi Tracy,

I'd like you to do a follow-up here.  Send me a photo of your plants and your set-up.  If you don't have a camera that can focus close, just get as close as you can without the image being blurry.  I want to be able see what your set-up looks like and the appearance of the plants.  I have some thoughts, but after reading your description several times, I really need to see what the plants look like.  Definitely submit the question as a follow-up so that your current question is with the new submission and your photo.

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

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------


Plants and Light Set-u   QUESTION: Hi.  I took pics for you too see.  I also labeled the pics for you.  I forgot to
mention a few more things in the last post...

In the pics, you will probably think I am keeping my plants too dry, b/c the
top of their soil is completely dry.  About  1/4 down into the soil, there is
moisture.  When I water them, the water doesnt reach the top of the soil.  I
had a mold problem previously.  Since the top of their soil is dry, I have not
had a mold problem.  I think I may have had a mold problem, though b/c I
kept giving them more water several times a week.

This is one reason why I am trying not to water them too much.  Another
reason is that all of my venus fly traps have a little rot on their rhizomes from
overwatering them.  The rot is not mushy. It's dry.  

Now I give the venuses and sundews maybe like an inch of water once a
week, sometimes I give them a little more water twice a week. I want to be
careful b/c they are only in 4 inch pots. Sometime I don't feel they need to be
watered until a week 1/2. (sundews and venuses)  I feel the soil with my
finger, If I feel moisture I wait a little while until I water again.  I never let
them dry out completely, though.

I had top watered my sudews a few weeks ago.  They weren't drying and I
noticed that their stems started to turn dark. Then when they dried a little,
their stems went back to the normal color.  This is why I don't want to give
them too much water and another reason why i keep the top of soil dry.

Adding to what I said about change in Temp/ Humidity....My roomate puts
the heater on at night and on the weekends.  I turn it off when there are not
around.  Then I put it back on.  Heaters are bad for plants, right? Is it just as
bad for plants to keep turning it on and off?

In the pic I attached, you'll see where heater is put on (in next room). Maybe
the heater is not the cause of their problems.  It is in the NEXT ROOM. On the
otherhand, when the heater was on one time I noticed that one of the leaves
on the sundew had curled up.

Maybe it's not the heater that's the problem, b/c actually since I've had them
under the florescent light, I've had problems with them growing. The TIPS OF
NEW GROWTH TURN YELLOW OFTEN.  (even before heater was on)  This
happens only to my venuses and sundews not my pitcher plants for some
reason.  

The venus fly traps start to grow new leaves VERY SLOWLY.  Then they don't
open- just sit there for weeks and then the tips of leaves turn yellow and then
brown.  The sundews too grow very very slowly.  They are not getting any
natural sunlight, only florescent light.

Maybe the problem is the TEMPERATURE in my house.  My house is very
drafty.  Then sometimes it's warm.  Everytime also I use hot water, my heater
goes on alot and makes house very warm.  

In one of the pics I sent you, you'll see a pot with plastic wrap over it.  There's
Cape Sundew seedlings in this pot.  They are the only plants growing well.
They even have dew on them.  The only problem is they have algae in their
pots. Is algae harmful to them?

I know you are against terrariums, but I was thinking that since my plants are
not doing well and my seedlings are, that maybe I should put a bag or plastic
wrap over their pots too.  Do you think i should? If so, should I cut holes in it
or can I keep it at 100 percent humidty?

Oh one last thing... I keep my light on 10 hours a day. Originally I had it at 12
hours but decreased it to 10, b/c I read that this may trigger dormancy.

Sorry for the long letter.  I just wanted to tell you everything so you can get a
better understanding of what's going on.  Thank you again.

Ps- I know my venuses and pitcher plants are supposed to be dormant now.  I
could not find a place to put them when the weather got really cold.  They
had experienced temps in the 30s before I broght them inside my house.  I
am going to skip dormancy this year only.  They are still alive.  I just need
your help how I can maybe help them grow better.

PSS- My sundew probably looks funny to you, b/c it's leave are only an inch
or 2 long.  It lost all of its leaves b/c of winter.





ANSWER: Hi Tracy,

Thank-you so much for sending the pictures.  As I suspected, I would be able to see things that I wouldn't catch from a written description.

Your problem is simple.  They're too dry, period.  Your plants are just barely hanging on with the moisture deeper in the soil.  

I know Jacob was trying to help you deal with the mold issue, but it's a trade-off.  When plants are grown indoors that like wet soil, mold spores are omni-present in homes epecially in the winter.  Mold will begin to grow.  You can keep it at a minimum by doing more top watering of the soil, and just scraping it off ocassionally.  Using a sulfur based fungicide, such as Safer Brand, will be a good preventative also.    (This is an extremely low-tox fungicide.  It inhibits fungal growth rather than killing it.  It's also approved for organic gardening.)  Stronger light will also keep it at bay more.

The bottom line is that you need to keep them wetter.  When you water, make sure you leave about a 1/4" of water in the bottom of the trays.  It's ok is the water to get used up, and for the tray to be dry for a day or two, but the soil should never be dry to the touch.

I wanted to mention your light also.  Your plants need to be closer.  They should be within two inches of the fluorescent tubes.  I can see from the pictures that the plants have no red at all.  That's a dead giveaway of lack of light.  You can accomplish this by staging them on blocks or other items in respect to the pot height.  Being closer will also help kill some of the mold since fluorescent tubes give off some UV.  Also, at first you may see some mild leaf burn since the leaves are so pale now.  Just ignore that.  Newer leaves should begin to grow with normal coloration.

I also wanted to address some of your other concerns.  After seeing your plants I believe the heater issue is irrelevant.  The plants were just too dry.  At this point, I wouldn't fuss with the dormancy issue.    Put your light on a 12 hour day and call it good.  Your Purple pitcher will probably make it through, but whether or not the flytraps survive is anybody's guess at this point.  Their biggest problem is the dryness and lack of light.  Once those problems are corrected, the plants should start looking much better.  If they are alive late spring, consider moving the pitcher plant and the flytraps outside.

The little tent for your Cape Sundew seedlings is fine.  The algae is only harmful if it grows over the seedlings.  Just scrape it off.  I don't recommend putting your other plants in a terrarium.  What will happen is you'll partially correct one problem (the water) and you'll create several new problems.

After increasing the water, and getting the light closer, send me another photo in about a month.  Hopefully we can make this a more successful endeavor.


Good Growing!

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

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you. I will keep them wetter and move them closer to the light. I have a
few more questions to ask you about my purple pitcher plant and my cape
seedlings....

PURPLE PITCHER PLANT- It's growing, but slowly.  It made a new leaf, but the
leaf hasn't fully developed, yet.  It's been sitting like that for weeks now. Does
it take a while for it to make fully developed leaves?  It's started to grow more
leaves besides that one.   
       Also I notice that it has dew on it's leaves.  Should I be feeding it? I
haven't fed it since it's been in my house (3 months) Also, my last question
about the purple pitcher plant... One of the purple pitcher's leaves is standing
up in the air. Is this b/c it's trying to get more light? How close should it and
my doodlebug be to the light?  It is 7 inches away from the light.  My other
thought why the leaf is sticking up is b/c there抯 new growth growing
underneath that leaf. Is this why?

CAPE SEEDLINGS- Yesterday I saw 2 worms in their pot.  The worms were
transparent with black heads.  I looked at pictures online and they look like
fungus gnat larvae.  Are you familar with these worms? Are they harmful to
my seedlings? I read they eat seedlings and algae.  There's alot of algae in
their pot. I try to pull out as much of the algae as I could. Should I spray the
seedlings with a fungicide? The only fungicide I have is a neem oil based
fungicide. Is this ok to use? Thank you again.


Answer
Hi Tracy,

Purple Pitcher:  Sarracenia purpurea tends to be slower growing.  Keep in mind that under normal conditions, they wouldn't be growing at all this time of year.  The dew you're seeing is nectar the plant makes to attract insects.

If the plant hasn't caught anything in the last three months, a small insect would be fine to feed it.  Just be sure to keep water in the pitcher since in nature this plant catches rainwater in the pitchers.

In the previous response I talked about Sarracenia light requirements.  They should be very close to the light; no more than 2-3 inches away.  The leaf you see being produced is probably a narrow leaf that often forms when plants are grown in inadequate light.

Cape Sundews:  Those worms probably are fungus gnat larvae.  Generally they aren't harmful, but it the infestation gets severe they will eat roots.  Your Neem oil will kill them.  It'll also have fungicidal action.  Just be sure to follow directions on the label.


Good Growing!

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