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Carnivorous Plants/2 pitchers 1 leaf

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Expert: - 5/28/2011


Question
2 pitchers one leaf
2 pitchers one leaf
Not sure how rare this is, but I have 2 pitchers growing off the same leaf.  Figured I would share it with you all.

Answer
Thank you for the photo!  That's an amazing and very rare mutation.  In my years in working with tens of thousands of Nepenthes, I've never seen this type of mutation.  Something happened during the early stages of leaf development that triggered it to produce two midribs and two pitchers.  It could have been a virus.  In any case, you have a noteworthy specimen.  If you want to preserve the leaf as is, you can use silicon.  Florists use it to preserve flowers.  I'm not sure how to do it, but you can research the internet for this information.  Some growers have used this technique to preserve Sarracenia pitchers.  However, this means cutting off the entire leaf before the pitchers dry up.  Of course, you can also wait until the leaf and pitchers dry up before clipping it for preservation.  I have a collection of dried pitchers that I use as references.

Good growing!
Jacob Farin

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!

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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.

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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.

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