FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hello everyone! I'm new to this forum and relatively new to keeping predatory plants. I'm looking for some tips and advice from all of you more experienced hobbyists. I bought a nepenthes ventricosa from the internet about a year ago because I had developed a bit of an interest in the hobby and after some research found that it was an easy pitcher plant recommended for beginners. Everything seemed to be going well until recently I have noticed a lot of the leaves starting to get holes and browning. I have been trimming off the leaves as they die and since the plant is still pretty small it has left it looking pretty scraggly with a long brown stem. It is planted in pure sphagnum moss and I water frequently with distilled water. I always make sure to keep the soil damp and do not have it sitting in water. I have also noticed what seems to be little bugs that I believe are living in the moss (maybe springtails? I'm not quite sure and will try to post some pictures). The plant is sitting on a partially sunny, south-facing windowsill in my kitchen and I am worried that one of my cats may be chewing on some of the leaves and causing the issues. Sorry for writing so much but just wanted to provide as much background as possible. I will post some pictures of my plant from a few months ago and how it looks currently.
Here are my main questions:
1. Should I replant it in into something like a hanging pot that is a little larger? (Plant is very small but I'm always concerned about the roots having enough room to grow)
2. If so, what is the ideal potting mix for a nepenthes ventricosa?
3. If I do replant it should I plant it up to where the leaves are or leave the brown stem exposed (like it is currently)?
4. Should I be misting the leaves and pitchers?
5. Should I be feeding it anything since its indoors? (I have read that some people put a small fish pellet into a pitcher every now and then to provide some nutrients)
6. Would the plant do better outdoors to keep it away from my cats and allow it to catch more bugs? (I live in zone 7 and the current spring temperatures are about 70°-80° F during the day and 50°-60°F at night)
7. Could I supplement distilled water for rain water or tap water that has been treated with dechlorinator (like something that would be used in an aquarium)?
8. When I trim dead leaves, should I pull them off of the stem or cut them at the base?
9. I'm pretty patient and understand that nepenthes ventricosa isnt really a fast growing plant but if anyone has any tips to help it grow larger and more full please share!

Feel free to give constructive criticism or advice as you see fit! I am open to suggestions and would appreciate the help. Sorry for the long post again and thank you for your time.

Jake, I am far from expert but think I could help on a couple of questions.

First, de chlorinated tap water could still have a tds too high for cp's. Distilled, rain or RO water only. If you are serious about growing cp's, get a tds meter. They are cheap and easy to get online AND will tell you whats going on with your water. Your tap water may be OK or maybe not, so measure it and know for sure.

2nd, I would get a bigger and hanging pot. The media in a bigger pot will help make the environment more stable for the plant, especially in the root zone. Start with fresh media when you repot, and be sure to rinse the roots gently in good water to reduce the chance of bugs. Hanging gets everything off the ground, and to me seems more natural for them.

3rd, as you are someone somewhat new to nepenthes, I suggest you avoid feeding your plant until you have it healthy and growing again. They tend to catch what they need on their own, so why take the risk of damage due to over feeding.

The growing tip still looks pretty healthy. If the media is not deteriorated it would probably be okay to leave it in that pot, but if there is some type of bug infestation maybe repotting would be in order.

If you do repot, then put the plant at the same level as it is now. I wouldn't pull the leaves off; if you don't want the brown ones then I would cut them off instead.

Everybody will have a different recipe for nepenthes media, but what they all have in common is that it can hold water AND have air spaces so the roots won't decay.

If the plant is in a sufficiently humid environment then you probably don't need to mist it. You seem to be keeping it healthy though so what you're doing is working. The damage does kind of look like the cat or other animal has been chewing on it, or maybe it was dropped.

Perfectly healthy plant.

Looks like a ventrata, I have one huge one and let me tell you that you can't kill these things, killing it would have to be your goal.

I put mine outside when temps hit 45f regularly and have left it outside in full sun. Some leafs have sunburned so badly they are going to die and the rest yellowed and reddened. No biggie, looks like hell but it just keeps growing and in the next couple months it will grow nice pitchers and be magnificent.

So in other words, don't worry, as long it's getting really good light and the soil is just barely moist it will grow....a ton.