FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I planted some Nepenthes maxima mini seeds around a month ago, and this past week some seedlings started to emerge. They are planted in pure sphagnum moss and I have them in my aquarium with all my other carnivorous plants. I'm using the tray method with them, and at least for germination it worked well (new seedlings are popping out every day). My question is the following: I know that adult nepenthes (or even older seedlings) should generally not be watered using the tray system, but is this ok at the beginning for seedlings? Or should I raise the pot so that the bottom is not touching the water and I just water them overhead every couple of days?

rfauffar wrote:My question is the following: I know that adult nepenthes (or even older seedlings) should generally not be watered using the tray system, but is this ok at the beginning for seedlings?

One of the common misconceptions going around... You can use the tray method as long as there is a good circulation of fresh water going (i.e. the old water evaporating off and you adding more). The water level shouldn't rise above 1/4 of the pot height though. I use this method all the time and it keeps my plants well hydrated and adds humidity to the surrounding air. I don't think you should treat a seedling any differently than an adult plant except give them more humidity when they are forming their first leaves .

Hello


I think different.

From my experience, nepenthes seedlings have to be watered like the adults ones. In the wild, they have no tray.

Nepenthes are not peatbog plants.

For me, if you grow your nepenthes into standing water, even tiny seedlings, you will end with weak plants, or rotting problems. Theses lil guys are so fragile.

Be sure that your soil is always wet, but not soaked wet. The important thing is relative humidity.

You need massive RH% for germination(this will raise the growing speed and germination rate)
After you can decrease the rh slowly to reach 70%.


At 70%+, you will not have to water the soil everydays, just 2 Or 3 times a week.

Hope this help

Ok great! Thanks! Another question, how do I water seedlings? Should I mist them overhead with a spray bottle?

rfauffar wrote:Ok great! Thanks! Another question, how do I water seedlings? Should I mist them overhead with a spray bottle?

That's how I water my Nepenthes seedlings. Mist them overhead, just hold the bottle a little higher than you normally would when watering so you don't accidently knock any over with the water :]

Maiden wrote:For me, if you grow your nepenthes into standing water, even tiny seedlings, you will end with weak plants, or rotting problems. Theses lil guys are so fragile.

Not necessarily. These are some pictures I took of wild nepenthes gracilis growing in a reservoir. They were mainly found growing right next to the water, their soil should be extremely waterlogged.

Thanks a lot for your answers! If I have enough seedlings I may try both methods and see the differences. Thanks!!

rfauffar wrote:Thanks a lot for your answers! If I have enough seedlings I may try both methods and see the differences. Thanks!!

Do tell !

Snap Traps wrote:

Maiden wrote:For me, if you grow your nepenthes into standing water, even tiny seedlings, you will end with weak plants, or rotting problems. Theses lil guys are so fragile.

Not necessarily. These are some pictures I took of wild nepenthes gracilis growing in a reservoir. They were mainly found growing right next to the water, their soil should be extremely waterlogged.

You cannot compare. The plants in the wild have constant ventilation and water running.

You have to adapt the growing conditions to indoor culture with less than optimal variants.

And i doubt that the nepenthes on your picture grow with roots in water.

What I'm trying to say is that nepenthes should not be seen upon as weak, fragile plants. Most of them are as tough as vfts (except some of the rarer, ultrahighland species). This puts people off trying to grow them and nepenthes experts could be far more numerous if people are willing to give these plants a try.

I place all of my plants in standing water with or without ventilation and they are all healthy and vigorous. Never had a root problem, ever.

Snap Traps wrote:I place all of my plants in standing water with or without ventilation and they are all healthy and vigorous. Never had a root problem, ever.

Sarracenia seem to be quite resistant to such conditions in cultivation, but many carnivorous plants are not. Flytraps in particular, I know, will definitely have issues if left in standing water, though they can sometimes tolerate such conditions in the wild because the water (even if standing) is actually moving a little bit. Cephalotus and Heliamphora too seem to be susceptible to problems when left standing in water. I know very little about growing Nepenthes, so I can't speak about that particular genus.

Snap Traps wrote:... You can use the tray method as long as there is a good circulation of fresh water going (i.e. the old water evaporating off and you adding more).

Maiden wrote:You have to adapt the growing conditions to indoor culture with less than optimal variants.

I think the important thing here isn't how it's watered but how it's planted. In my experience the moisture in a peat based mix in a solid walled container is a gradient where the soil is "drier" the higher you go in the pot. Will a 4 inch tall pot in a 2 inch tray have issues if the tray is always full? Probably. Will a 10 inch tall pot in the same tray have the same issues? I doubt it.

My nep is in a net pot about 5 inches tall and sits in a one inch deep tray. I fill the tray to the top with water and don't refill until a day or two after the tray dries. I don't leave it sitting in water but I DO use the tray method. The tray method does not equal sitting in water.

I agree with Snap Traps here, it's not the water in and of itself that causes problems. It's stagnant water with a depleted oxygen level that is the problem. If your specific growing conditions allow for good evaporation than you shouldn't have problems unless you're using a tray that's too deep for the pot you have and you're keeping that tray full of water. If you're growing in an aquarium with a RH so high your rate of evaporation is almost 0 than don't let the plants sit in water. But again, whether or not you let your plants sit in water doesn't determine whether or not you can use a tray.

Matt wrote: Cephalotus and Heliamphora too seem to be susceptible to problems when left standing in water.

I know a lot of growers have been saying this is the cause of the CSDS (Cephalotus Sudden Death Syndrome) but I was growing my pot of cephalotus during its growing season in water at least 1/4 of the pot's height, reaching up to half the height occasionally. I have never experienced any problems so far but I do tend to leave the soil on the moist-dry side in winter to ward off mold. I haven't much experience with heliamphora though.

parker679 wrote:I think the important thing here isn't how it's watered but how it's planted. In my experience the moisture in a peat based mix in a solid walled container is a gradient where the soil is "drier" the higher you go in the pot. Will a 4 inch tall pot in a 2 inch tray have issues if the tray is always full? Probably. Will a 10 inch tall pot in the same tray have the same issues? I doubt it.

Good point there Parker .

This is another good example of what works for someone can be very bad for another one

Anyway, nice pictures!, I really have to visit a nepenthes natural site someday

Ceph sudden death is overwatering, this often happen when a ceph grower not very experienced(like me), become too much confident.
Thats why i grow my cephs on the dryside in a 90%Rh terrarium with my heliamphora collection, by the time i get more experience with that genus.

Have a nice week-end guys