Hi all! I am still alive. Geez, has it really been over a month since I’ve posted anything up on here? Yeah, it has been a busy month so far – and now that dormancy is fast approaching, things in The Asylum will get even busier! Divisions, repotting, cleaning, and reorganizing are all things that I hope will be done while the plants are asleep. (By the way, you can always catch me on the Instagram – @rco911 – in between blog posts.)
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Before the photo updates, just a couple things worth mentioning…
– A core member of BAPP and dear friend… moved to Oregon. I’m currently babysitting Derek’s plants. For the time being, his plants and my plants are getting along and playing nicely.
– Mike Wang and I went on a lil’ Darlingtonia excursion earlier this month. Photos and video to be featured in a future post. You can read about *one* of the sites we visited in Mike’s post on the Sarracenia forums. Stay tuned for a future Darlingtonia update!
– Not plant related, but SF GIANTS ARE IN THE WORLD SERIES! AGAIN! YEAHHHHH!
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So anyyywayyyyyy… at this point in time, much of the greenhouse looks like this. Fugly.
Dormancy. Time to bust out that katana blade and slice through this madness soon.
BUT! There are still a few gems in that mess.
Although *most* of the Sarracenia pitchers are fading, things are still looking OK in the mini-greenhouse. This is a small 6 x 8 greenhouse with it’s own micro climate. Read more here. It’s more humid than the main house, and the temperatures seem to be a bit more stable. It does not get so hot in there during the day and (I am hoping) it does not get too cold in there during the winter. I can line this with bubble wrap and stick a small heater in there if need be during winter. I would not want to find myself stuck in the same cataclysmic-cold-snap situation like last year. See link above. Anyway, some of Derek’s plants have moved in here. So far, so good.
Inside the dome.
Nepenthes tiveyi “Red Queen” – from Kinjie Coe
Nepenthes ventricosa x tiveyi – from Paul Barden
In the realms of Sarracenia – couple things still looking decent in the wreckage of burnt out foliage. I haven’t had a chance to photograph some of the leuco/leuco hybrids that are still OK but on their way out. Hope to provide an update on that later.
Sarracenia moorei “Orange Glow” x ‘Adrian Slack’ – one of my crosses from a few years ago. Still a young plant that I finally put in it’s own pot! Let’s see what that extra root space will do next season.
Sarracenia “Saurus” – Fall pitchers. Cross by Phil Fauilsi. The Spring pitchers were even more massive.
Sarracenia purpurea ssp. venosa – a cross between two different S. purpurea ssp. venosa clones by Mike Wang. I’m diggin’ the ruffles.
Stapelia in effect. Not a carnivorous plant, but boy does this mofo smell. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to experience this awesome odiferous wonder, Derek! OMFG does this thing staaank.
I did have a lot of losses though and I’m still mourning those plants. As my friend Kinjie told me regarding these plants, “Hey, you gotta learn somehow!” Yes, true, but losing plants is a sucky way to learn! To the left is a Nepenthes densiflora x truncata. You can see some of the cold damage that this baby took. The center of the plant is still alive and there are new growpoints forming where the cold turned the main growpoint into mush. In any event, I’m so very glad that many of the plants survived. Some of the surprises that I found under that overwinter film provided some great comfort, hope, and solace.
Nepenthes tiveyi “Red Queen”
