FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Sponsored by FlytrapStore.com

Discussions about anything related to Venus Flytraps, cultivars and named clones

Moderator: Matt

User avatar
By xr280xr
Posts:  2807
Joined:  Wed Jun 22, 2011 3:29 pm
#182451
I bought a 5 plant bundle of FTS Maroon Monsters about a year and a half ago and one of them has been consistently more maroon than the others. In fall last year it was pure maroon where the others still had parts with some green (like the trap margins or hints of green on the leaves. The extra maroon plant puts up new leaves that never show any green where the others usually start out with some green and then darken more as they soak up the light. Last year they were all in the same pot and had truly identical conditions. This year I've spread them out between pots but otherwise identical conditions and it's still staying almost pure maroon. I love it, but why would that be?

Here's a somewhat poor example. This was taken early spring so it still had a little green at this point, but there's a picture of a couple of the other plants taken at the same time for comparison. As the season moves on they both increase their maroonness (whatever spellchecker...that's totally a word) proportionally. So what I'm saying is I know a regular FTS Maroon Monster can look like the bottom pic, but that this plant at its greenest.
MM_Normal.jpg
MM_Normal.jpg (227.79 KiB) Viewed 2265 times
MM_Extra.jpg
MM_Extra.jpg (324.81 KiB) Viewed 2265 times
User avatar
By Matt
Location: 
Posts:  22523
Joined:  Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:28 pm
#182452
xr280xr wrote:I love it, but why would that be?
Color is controlled by so many variables it is hard to say. Even genetically identical plants growing in the same conditions right next to each other will look completely different at times. Our tray of Maroon Monsters will have some that are quite green and others that are deep maroon and the reasons for the coloration are wide and varied.
Matt liked this
User avatar
By xr280xr
Posts:  2807
Joined:  Wed Jun 22, 2011 3:29 pm
#182453
The only things I could think of originally was that it was either a residual effect (and maybe still is) from its conditions when you owned it, Matt, or its root orientation in the soil. Having moved it to a new home and having it still exhibit the extra maroon shoots down the root orientation theory. So if it's genetically identical to the others, it seems like they must contain some kind of switch (an inactive gene?) that can be activated to cause the expression of extra pigment because it's a pretty significant difference from the other 4. Maybe it fed on something special.
User avatar
By Matt
Location: 
Posts:  22523
Joined:  Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:28 pm
#182455
xr280xr wrote:The only things I could think of originally was that it was either a residual effect (and maybe still is) from its conditions when you owned it, Matt, or its root orientation in the soil.
That is certainly a possibility. It may have come out of tissue culture more recently or longer ago and is on a slightly different growth cycle than the others.
xr280xr wrote:Maybe it fed on something special.
That is another possibility. I have noticed that color can change depending on whether or not the plants catch insects.

More additions! Thanks Secretariat73! S. leucophy[…]

Drosera germination time

Re: germination time, I got some d. madagascariens[…]

Transaction with Secretariat73

I must concur. Despite the best efforts of our dea[…]

So far, not less than five days apart. Humidity va[…]

Argh! Just 4 days left in the photo contest and we[…]

SASE received. Order is fulfilled. Return envelope[…]

My Sarracenia x moorei 'Red Velvet' is turning out[…]

Hello, New to the forum

And if the deer runs, be sure to track it down. A […]

Support the community - Shop at FlytrapStore.com!