Expert: Christopher Littrell - 7/8/2010

Question
Hi! I live in Asia and I've been growing some Nepenthes for about 2 years now and it's starting to have some problem. Lately, the leaves of almost all my Nepenthes was smaller than the previous ones and no pitchers. Should I repot them as it's a year now since I last repotted my plants(I use cocopeat and I heard that it breaks very fast), or is it because of the low humidity because this year, the climate's getting exceptionally hot and dry and my plants are grown outside under 50% shade cloth. Thanks so much.

Answer
Hello Tan,

It could be a combination of problems, but mainly, repot the plant into sphagnum peat moss and orchid bark. Cocopeat is often not the best alternative because it sometimes has salt and other additives which could harm Nepenthes. High heat levels over 90 degrees and lower humidity levels would also be cause for the plants to stop pitchering and look less healthy than before. Try to keep the plant hydrated and cooler and place them near other plants to hold in humidity. Many Nepenthes species can adapt to lower humidity slowly. What species of Nepenthes you have will determine how adaptable they are. Typically, species like N. sanguinea, N. ventrata, N. ventricosa, and N. alata are adaptable and easy to manage. If you have species like N. rajah, then they typically do not adapt well to lower humidity levels and need specific low temperature changes at night to keep them happy.

Christopher