Re: Orange flowers now pitcher plants

Donna...not Frank here, but before I built my mini-bog for my Sarrs
and one cute little Venus flytrap, I got a lot of conflicting advice
on hardiness from some kind people on Carnivorous plant list, so,
since I'd gotten one of mine from Tony Avent, I wrote him and this is
what he replied:

"According to Fred Case, one of the worlds leading authorities, he
grows ALL species outdoors in the ground in Saginaw, Michigan (zone
4b).  I have discussed sarracenia hardiness with Fred on many
occasions, and he insists that there is no problem with winter
hardiness.  I would recommend that they not remain in standing
water/ice during the entire winter. "

So, built my bog and planted my guys and they seem happy as
clams...of course, I am south of you, but John Green in Salt Lake
City, Utah, posted to CP list that "In my experience (I live in zone
5), pretty much all Sarracenia will do well.  Of course, the more
cold hardy ones like oreophila, flava, and purpurea ssp. purpurea
will do fine, but even the southern ones like leucophylla and
purpurea ssp. venosa seem to thrive. "

He has a good page on CPs, with a link to his outdoor bog page plus
other links of interest:

http://www.cc.utah.edu/~jsg16/cp.htm

There are other species of CPs that will also survive outside in z 5,
but sarrs are my love....well, I'm quite fond of that little VFT,
too...

You cannot use water with chlorine or any other chemicals or
dissolved solids for carnivorous plants.  They are native to pure
bogs...if the bogs get contaminated, they die.

I collect rain water (not getting much so far this season) in a large
plastic trash can with a screened top (to keep out mosquitoes, leaves
and tree debris) and store it in used spring water jugs for my bog.
If it doesn't rain, I dump in a gallon - I have a PVC pipe going to
the bottom, terminating at the top, with a rock lid, so I can water
from below, like a natural bog....seems to work.

CP bogs are built of sand and peat - preferably, according to CP
listers, long fiber sphagnum, however, mine is mostly baled peat with
just a bit of sphagnum and mine seem OK with this.

I say Go for it!  Sarracenia are like potato chips...you can't just
have one:-)  Incredibly beautiful plants IMO with fantastic flowers
in addition to their marvelous pitchers.

Just do some research before you site and build your bog...

Marge Talt, zone 7 Maryland
mtalt@hort.net
Editor:  Gardening in Shade
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----------
> From: Justcrabby@aol.com
> 
> Hum, Are yours in a sheltered area? I have been thinking about
trying some. Most claim not to be hardy this far north (zone5). Have
you lost many? Which seem to be the most reliable for someone to
start with? 
> 
> So, I have to ask... do you save rain water for them, since you do
not use any tap water? Does the chlorine kill them? Just curious...
> 
> Donna
> gentian21@insightBB.com writes:
> 
> > 
> > 
> > I have  many sarracenia, venus fly trap, Calopogon, Epipactis X
Sabine,
> > Primula frondosa and bordering it gentians and bluets.  This is
the second
> > year for the bog.  Next to it I have an ericaceous no-tap-water
bed.
> > Blueberries with other vacciniums, wintergreen and Cornus
canadensis.  All
> > of these do great as long as I don't use any tapwater.  I mulch
the bed with
> > leaves for winter.
> > Frank Cooper
> > zone 5b

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