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Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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Posted by stevexyz 8b (My Page) on Sat, Oct 11, 08 at 19:56
| I am a newbie at this, do my Sarracenia purpurea(Purple pitcher plant) need dormancy for bigger growth next year or would that be too riskey? I can put them in the fridge, they are in pots I can also just leave them outside if that wont kill them I live in Dallas, TX? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| They do need dormancy, just by lowering the photoperiod & placing it in a cool place. If you are growing it outside, that will come naturally. I place my sarraccenias & VFTs in the fridge for the winter. Never lost one yet. Fail to give them dormancy, they will become week & eventually die. |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| They'll be fine outside where you are I think, how cold does the winter nights get? These grow naturally in the northeast up to Canada. |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| Hm, does that also include S. leucophylla and Sarracenia hybrids? Should I plan to have them inside the fridge with the VFTs this winter? About what time of the year should they head towards the fridge? We had a cold snap this weekend (a high of like 35 and lows in the low 20s), but I had the VFT in the windowsill for the time being. Now that we're back to the mid-50s and 60s I might put him back outside to re-acclimate to outside temperatures. |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| Yes, those need dormancy too. ALL American pitcher plants need it. When outside night air gets in the 40's I leave them out until it gets near frost then in the fridge they go! Just put mine in. |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| Woooo boy. We've been hitting the mid to low 20s at night lately, but we're in a bit of a cold spell. Guess when I get home it's time for the fridge! The VFT has been hiding in my windowsill the past few days as I was terrified of losing him (he's my first CP), but, I figure I'll put him outside tomorrow morning and put him in the fridge on Sunday after he gets used to slightly colder weather. He's been hiding in my windowsill for the past few days, but I doubt he's acclimated to the mid-60s/70s I keep the apartment in. Pity I can't just leave him out all winter. I hope to put the 5 Pitcher Plants and 2 VFTs I have in a big (and thus, hopefully, easier to survive zone 5/6 winters in) 12" mini-bog soon, but that'll have to happen next spring, apparently. :) |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| Yeah, im having a similar problem. PLZ checkout my post called "Vft and sarracenia dormancy". Of course, I need help. |
RE: Dormancy in purple pitcher plant???
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| Hey folks, dormancy is a requirement, but it should mimic the conditions the plants experience in the wild, as best as possible. Hiding in the fridge, in complete darkness, is a last resort IMO. Unless you expect plants to experience nuclear winter every year, this is not what they normally go thru. Give them cooler conditions, lower light, and all is smooth. The fridge is a last resort, where biology is basically put into hibernation until spring, but for all but the northern variety of the purple pitcher plant, this is not what they experience in the wild, so is not the best option. For the northern variety of Sarrencia purpurea, yes they do normally go dormant for up to 5 months at temperatures around freezing (and in rather dark conditions under a deep snowpack), but that's the only one in this thread that benefits from really prolonged and low-light dormancy. -Don |
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