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Carnivorous Plants/Aphrodite Mexican Butterwort
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Question
Hey! I've noticed that the older leaves on my Aphrodite Mexican butterwort keep turning brown & dying off. Fortunately it looks like the plant is still growing vigorously. Is this something normal for the butterwort? She is grown in am open air terrarium, without a lid, under blue spectrum grow lights (approx 8 hours/day). I have her set up higher in the terrarium because I know that butterworts are not swampy plants & prefer slightly drier conditions. She's produced two babies, but they too are doing the same thing. What do I need to change to help them loose less leaves?
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Hi Rexenne,
Not a thing. Your plant is perfectly healthy, and this is the normal process of new leaves growing and old ones dying off. The reason it's so obvious on a P. x "Aphrodite" is that the leaves are erect as opposed to something like Pinguicula moranensis that hugs the ground. On the ground hugging varieties you just don't see it as much.
Simply cut off the old ones for good hygiene. You'll probably find in your open terrarium environment that P. x "Aphrodite" is quite prolific, making many new plants, and eventually filling most of the space.
Good Growing!
Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.cobraplant.com
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| Rating(1-10) | Knowledgeability = 10 | Clarity of Response = 10 | Politeness = 10 |
| Comment | Sweet!! I'll pick those leaves out ASAP. Thanks for the knowledge! | ||
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Answers by Expert:
Sarracenia Northwest
Expertise
If your plant is showing poor growth, discoloration, abnormal leaves or possible infestation, the growers at Sarracenia Northwest can help! Carnivorous plant experts Jeff Dallas and Jacob Farin will help you diagnose the problem and get your plants on the right track. Their no nonsense approach has helped thousands of growers all over the world. They can help you too!
Experience
With over 40 years of combined experience, Jeff and Jacob has definitely taken a straight forward approach to growing carnivorous plants. They have encountered many types of diseases, abnormal growth and infestations related to carnivorous plants, and they know what it takes to get plants looking beautiful and healthy again.
Education/Credentials
Authors of Secrets to Growing Beautiful Carnivorous Plants for Your Home and Garden and producers of the Grow Carnivorous Plants! DVD Series. They also produce a monthly video podcast to illustrate how plants cycle through the seasons.
No terrariums. No myths. No nonsense.
Just the straight facts from guys who grow and propagate
thousands of carnivorous plants each year.
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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR QUESTION: We no longer answer how-to questions (i.e. How do I propagate...?; How do I grow...?). Instead, we help growers by diagnosing a specific plant problem and offering solutions (i.e. Why is my sundew not producing dew?; Is now a good time to divide my Sarracenia?; Why are the traps turning black?; What's a good substitute for perlite?; Why didn't my seeds germinate?; Can you identify this carnivorous plant for me?) For general plant care, please read our care sheets on our main website: http://www.cobraplant.com/caresheets For business questions: http://www.cobraplant.com/contact |
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