FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I've got a couple of Pings that don't seem to be doing that great. They stay in temps 55-70 w/ greater than 50% relative humidity. They're not getting a ton of light as it sits back from the T5HOs a bit. How much light should they be receiving & should they be kept moist by sitting in RO water?

I'm sorry you're experiencing issues, brn_thumbs! May I please ask for a photo of the flowers your plant are growing so I can attempt to identify the species and therefore help you further? The plant is either a cold temperate or warm temperate and the growing conditions for both can differ dramatically. I believe the plant might be a P. primuliflora (a warm temperate Pinguicula) but I'd like to see a flower so I can ensure the advice I give you is accurate.

Sure, I believe they're P. caerulea, but I'm no expert... Thanks in advance!

I'm sorry, they're actually P. primuliflora! Had to go check my eBay purchase history

It's great that we have a definitive species! That is definitely a warm temperate Pinguicula species which is fond of moist soil and can survive occasional flooding of the pot. How often do you water it? Looking at the media you use may I ask if it is heavy on aeration stuff (perlite, silica sand, etc.)? It's not a bad thing to have plenty of aeration in the soil to prevent compaction however it does reduce the amount of peat which can retain moisture.

You can have a go at keeping them sat in RO water but do keep an eye out for mould and fungus; even though they can handle higher levels of moisture than, say, Mexican pings, they do have their limits. Please do be careful with leaving water on the leaves as this can cause scorching and make leaves die.

As for light the minimum wattage you need is 40 watts; if your bulbs are 6500k (or close, such as 6700k), which I would assume the T5s emit, you'll be fine. At least 10 hours of light a day would be great, you can follow your natural summer-time day cycle if you like.

Humidity is okay; the lowest of your temperature range may be a tad low but as long as it is not extensive I really don't see any issues. These plants have their requirements, as all plants do, but they aren't overly fussy and should flourish once the basics are down.

To be honest I think the dryness may come from under-watering; if the plant is continuing to flower and not aborting them then I really do not think there is anything seriously wrong.

Well I checked them out... No roots to speak of really. Their media don't typically dry out much as I keep their trays watered regularly. I'm not sure if it was root rot or fungus gnats (or their larvae), but the roots are pretty decimated. I repotted them, can I expect any recovery or should I just move on? Thanks for any guidance.

Root die-off could be an indicator of rot or pests so you definitely did the correct thing by re-potting; it'd be worth giving it a little time to see if new roots grow. Warm temperate Pinguicula can propagate themselves by growing tiny plantlets on the ends of their leaves, too, so if the plant does look like it's declining you might want to check each leaf before disposing of it just in case.