Thanks,
Adrian

Sarracenias enter into dormancy when the photoperiods starts to lower and temperatures go down at the begging or end of autumn. The first sign that the Sarracenia are entering dormancy is that it simply stops producing new leaves and the growing tip becomes compact. The old pitchers start to loose their color and will develop dead spots and its edges curled and browning. Sarracenia flava, alata, leucophylla, and oreophila will sometimes produce a couple of sword-shape leaves called phyllodia. That's normal.

Sometimes, depending where you live and the species of the Sarracenia, like S. purpurea, will keep its pitchers but it will be too damage by the next growing season.

If you are not planning to grow them in a bog garden and only want to have them growing in pots. To store your dormant Sarracenias, most people simply place the plants in a cool room and maintain their soil moist just enough to keep the rhizomes from drying out. While others, simply snip the old leaves off and place them in the fridge if they live in a warm climate. Wrapping the rhizomes with moist moss to keep them from drying out.

Still some few people risks just keeping their dormant plants covered in snow out in their yards, Sarracenia Northwest once posted pics of their yard of Sarracenia covered with snow. But it is best not to do that to Southern growing Sarracenias like S. flava, S. leucophylla, S. minor, and S. purpurea ssp. venosa.

Where I live in Arizona, it used to gets cold enough that I simply snip the old leaves and simply place a shade-clothe over the greenhouse. But this past winter, the winter was too short and not quite cold enough and I wasn't paying attention so they didn't get a proper dormancy. Only one S. flava and two of my rubras flowered this year.

Well, here are some of my pics:

This is S. flava var. rugelii or "Splotch Throat". Although it doesn't have the splotch, yet.

S. flava var. "Copper Top"

S. flava var ornate or "Heavy Veined"

My ventrata is barely making 3-inch urns.

I had S. flava "Red Tube" but unfortunately it became the victim of rats, they also destroyed my S. alata "Red Throat" and damaged three of my rubras. Damn pests!

Well, the trick is simply keep them in a cool place and the photoperiod low, and make sure that the media its growing on is moist enough to keep the rhizomes from drying out. Hope this helps and happy growing.

Tom

Thanks,
Adrian

- Adrian