Expert: Christopher Littrell - 4/18/2008

Question
3 of my sarracenias are in a bit of trouble i think.  after dormancy, my alta, judith hindle and northern pitcher plant are not showing any new growth.   (The other 14 pitchers have done well over the winter, so i am not a TOTAL failure, in fact my rubra, white top and scarlet belle are going on their 5th growing season with me here in SD)  Getting back to the 3 that i'm worried about.  i noticed a bit of fungus on the judith hindle crown, which i promptly removed and retreated with anti fungus.  and the northern pitcher looked great, and after i repotted it, about a week later, i noticed a bit of fungus also.  so i trimmed off ALL the leaves and treated with anti fungus.  after 2 weeks, i pulled them out of their fresh pots to examine the roots, and the roots look white and healthy.  the judith hindle had a fantastic root system, at least 6 inches in length.  the alta and northern pitcher roots also looked healthy.   do i just accept the fact that i can do nothing for them and cut my losses?  or is there some miracle "hail mary" that i can try?  

also, while repotting all my other sarracenia's i ran out of perlite and subbed in vermiculite.   shouldnt be a problem, should it?   please advise.   thanks a bunch!!

p.s.  when are your purple pitchers going to be available?  my brother fell in love with mine last year, so i gave it to him as a gift (dont worry, he has a few very nice VFT's that are doing well, so the purple is in alright hands).   long story short, i miss my purple!  ha ha.     thanks again guys, i love my sarracenias!!

Answer
Hello Darren,

I think you intended to ask this question of Sarracenia Northwest.

In any event, keep using sulfur powder or neem oil to treat the fungus on your Sarracenias (only as directed by the manufacturer). Repotting them and placing them in direct sunlight will lessen the incidence of mold as well.

I have never used vermiculite with my carnivorous plants as it is generally not the same as perlite. I would avoid it as a perlite substitute as it often contains asbestos and other potentially harmful materials that might not be healthy for bog plants. Vermiculite is more often used to hold in water and as a soil additive rather than provide drainage.

You might want to check Sarracenia northwest's site to see when the Purple Pitcher Plants will be back or send them a question here.

I hope you beat that pesky fungus problem,

Christopher