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Carnivorous Plants/Nepenthes after repotting

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Expert: - 2/26/2010


Question

N. Burkei
Hello, I have repotted my 2nd half of neps 2 weeks ago and some of the plants had the pitchers dry out; however, N. Burkei is showing sings of death. The bottom leaves are turning yellow and now I have almost all leaves with yellow tips except the upper 3. The 2 offsprings are growing fast and look healthy producing a pitcher with each leaf. Did I maybe damage the roots while separating the orchid bark from the roots? I noticed that it is very difficult to remove orchid bark when repotting neps because the roots grow into the bark.
 So my question is, when repotting nepenthes, should I not separate old soil from the roots to avoid damaging the root system..

Answer
Hello Ilya,

I just repotted one of my Nepenthes last night and I understand your concern about the orchid bark getting stuck to the root system as i had some problems with it too. What helps is having a tray of distilled water standing by to soak the roots in. Just shake the plant gently in the water and work the root ball gently with your fingers and some of the old material will fall away. If a few roots are damaged, it is generally fine. Nepenthes do have brittle roots, so too much pressure can break them.

Your Nepenthes burkei looks to be dropping a few of its lower leaves. Is the plant still producing new growth at the top? As long as the newest leaves are still unfurling and lengthening, the plant is fine. Only time will tell if the plant was adversely affected by the repotting. Most species of Nepenthes are very resilient and tough, so just give it time to recover and see what transpires.

Best bet when repotting is to only remove the old material that can easily be removed after that rinsing occurs. Anything stuck to the roots firmly can be left there.

Christopher
    Questioner's Rating
    Rating(1-10)Knowledgeability = 10Clarity of Response = 10Politeness = 10
    CommentThank you sir. The plant lost its bottom leaves but seems to be continuing to grow new leaves, so I am sure it will recover just fine in time to come.


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Christopher Littrell

Expertise

I am capable of answering questions about the most common carnivorous plants found in cultivation. I have no personal experience with Byblis, Drosophyllum, Aldrovanda, and Heliamphora. I have not cultivated gemmae forming pygmy sundews nor tuberous sundews. For information regarding those aforementioned species, I would suggest contacting other experts. I can answer questions regarding most species of Nepenthes, tropical and temperate Drosera, Mexican Pinguicula, Sarracenias, and Dionaea. I have some limited experience with growing Utricularia, Cephalotus, and Darlingtonia.

Experience

I have grown carnivorous plants off and on for about 27 years. I have made the same mistakes and suffered the same mishaps that many growers make as they attempt to separate the myths from the realities of growing these plants. Currently, I am successfully growing a variety of tropical sundews, a Nepenthes, several Venus Flytraps of varying ages, and Sarracenias. I have been successful in stratifying Sarracenia seeds and providing artificial dormancy requirements for my temperate plants when needed.

Education/Credentials
I hold a Master's degree in Educational Psychology. Over my lifetime, I have constantly read books involving the growing conditions of carnivorous plants. I hope to incorporate the educational aspects involved in psychology with teaching other people how to cultivate carnivorous plants.

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