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Post by blokeman on Jul 25, 2009 22:49:45 GMT -5
Has anyone tried or ever put water IN the pitchers of their sarrs?
I have noticed that a full pitcher is top heavy and tends to break in the wind, so if one tries to do so, make sure you stake it...
But, put all that aside, is there any benefit from doing so? How DOES a sarracenia 'absorb' the nutrients from bugs, if there's no liquid (visible to my naked eye..) like in nepenthes?
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Post by kd on Jul 26, 2009 15:16:58 GMT -5
I believe there are enzymes or something that absorb the insects. The point of the lid on most Sarrs is to keep water OUT. S. purpurea is the exception, where rain water is used to drown the insect. I do try to keep water in the pitchers of my purpurea. Someone else may be able to give a better explanation.
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Post by petmantis on Jul 26, 2009 16:32:55 GMT -5
I occasionally put a bit of water in the pitchers of sarrs with lids that are supposed to keep water out, because I've found that prey just decomposes inside the pitcher instead of being absorbed. Just a few drops, maximum till the pitcher is 1/4 full of water....However on my S. purpureas I don't fill the pitchers anymore, the rain takes care of that Prey that is kept in a pitcher without water seems to rot, and where it does, a brown spot develops on the pitcher's side. As the prey decomposes even more, the brown spot will spread throughout the pitcher like a disease, making a brown ring around the rotting prey. Anything above that brown ring will eventually die, since water and nutrients can't be pumped up to keep the cells alive. (this has only happened maybe 3 times to my plants, and usually with older/flimsy pitchers)
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Post by mabudon on Aug 9, 2009 8:19:47 GMT -5
Woops sorry I didn't see this one til just now!
When upright Sarrs catch prey they secrete goop that turns the prey into stew. They don't break down the carapaces so that is probably what gives the impression that they are not digesting anything. They are designed to eat bugs and keep water out, so they don't need any assistance doing so.
Besides, as you've noticed, it makes them flop over when ya get water in them and once they flop over it's usually a bother to get them to stand up as the structural integrity of them base of the pitcher is compromised.
Helis- water goes in, Purps, water as well, but generally leave the other pitcher type plants alone, they know what they're doing!!
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Post by blokeman on Aug 9, 2009 9:04:50 GMT -5
Thanks everyone, me and a friend were debating whether it was necessary or not to do so. I wasn't aware that purps could/should be watered, but as for tall pitchers, I definitely agree that their hoods are there for a reason, to repel rain... In my case, I think it's the strong winds that take out my pitchers, well, those before I learned I needed to start staking my tall Sarrs... I find that twist ties work rather well at holding them all together in a bunch, to keep it steady as a whole, and not individual pitchers holding themselves up. May not be very esthetical, but it works. And those that are plasticized, they don't seem to rust! The paper one's rust within a couple days at most. Thanks for posting!
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