Expert: Sarracenia Northwest - 2/3/2011

Question
Howdy Jacob :) Im planning on volunteering my time to the Botanical Center here in Des Moines, Iowa growing carnivorous plants. They have only two Napenthes plants which they cannot identify (I think they are N. ventrata and N. maxima). Id like to donate all my plants (my new apt doesnt offer ample light conditions or space) and volunteer my time to growing them there for others to appreciate. Since everything i know about carnivorous plants is from cobraplants.com, your CD's, and personal exp im definitely going to speak highly of Sarraenia NW but i was wondering if you had any additional tips for a project of this size or what type of display you'd suggest. FYI I plan on growing only tropical plants since its a giant greenhouse and possibly (if successful) adding a section of Sarracenia, hardy Drosera, and Dionaea to the outside gardens.

Answer
That's very generous of you.  Many customers have also donated their collections to botanical gardens, as we have donated many plants to numerous gardens throughout the country.

I don't have any specific recommendations on growing the plants as part of permanent displays. The main issue is keeping plants looking attractive every day.  This means minding the plants and rotating them on a regular basis, something that can be rather arduous depending on the size of the collection. This is why we don't open the nursery to the public except for scheduled open houses.  It's too much work to make things looking nice all the time.  

I also don't have any suggestions for specific displays.  I'm more of a minimalist.  Perhaps you can speak with the curator or board of directors for feedback on what they would like to see.  The main thing is for visitors to see healthy specimens and learn something useful about these plants.

So the most I can say is have fun and thank God for volunteers like you!

Good growing!
Jacob Farin