Expert: Sarracenia Northwest - 7/24/2010

Question
Thank you for getting back to me.  They have been outside for the past few days and we have had a great deal of rain.  Tey are very wet at this time.  As for the water that I give them.  I boil the kettle and then let it sit till it gets cold.  I am guessing that this is a no no./  I will go to the pharmacy an purchase some to see if this works. should I also re pot them?

Answer
Hi Carole,

Boiling water is one of those old urban legends.  I remember hearing about this back in the 70's.  The idea was that the boiling somehow "locked-up" the minerals or made them precipitate out.  Hard water minerals such as calcium carbonate are not affected by boiling.  The only processes that remove minerals are distillation, reverse osmosis, and de-ionization.

Repotting would be a good idea if your plants are still alive.  I was under the impression from what you said that they were not.  Use a mix of half peat moss (from a bale, not a small bag; small bags usually have fertilizer) and half perlite or clean sand.  Silica sand is best.  Don't use anything else for the potting media.  A six inch pot would be adequate for both plants.

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.cobraplant.com