Question
I recently rescued a Parrot pitcher from a local garden center (it had been there for over a year, and was very sickly).  When I got it home, I realized that there were tiny sundews sprouting all around it, from where all the carnivorous plants are crowded together in a pan of water at the greenhouse.  I've separated the plants, and one sundew has survived the past couple of frost-free months here in zone 6b, but I have no idea what kind it is.  In form it is just like the Cape sundew, but it is completely green, without the red on the leaves.  Do you have any ideas what kind it could be?  I have it outside with my flytraps and pitchers, and it is happily catching gnats and growing quite well.

Answer
Hi Jackie,

Unfortunately a lot of sundews look alike during the seedling stage, so you really won't know what it is until it grows a bit larger.  Based on your description, it most likely is a Cape sundew, but the green form that lacks red pigments.  (Or it could be a typical sundew that has been very shaded so it wasn't able to express its red pigments.)  Cape sundews produce seeds very readily, and they can be somewhat of a weed in a greenhouse.  At our nursery, we sometimes see these sundews popping up in all sorts of pots.  The spoon leaf sundew is also a common "weed" in a greenhouse.

The Cape sundew will survive a light frost.  The plant may die completely if the roots freeze, but usually they'll come back from seed.  If you want, you could attempt to separate the sundews out and repot them in individual pots.  Otherwise, they'll make a nice display with your parrot pitcher.

Good growing!
Jacob Farin