Sarracenia flava at one time grew wild around Jamestown, Virginia
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There are several good reasons to grow our native North American pitcher plants. Maybe you enjoy chic, sculptural foliage plants, and are curious to try growing something new. Maybe you want a striking plant that you can grow in a very small, sunny spot on your deck. Maybe you care about preserving endangered plant species. Or maybe, you would just enjoy growing something that will help reduce the population of ants and mosquitoes in your garden.
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If you think that you need to construct a special boggy bed to grow these beauties, you might be pleased to see that there is a clean and simple way to grow them. You can create a mini-bog in a bowl, and grow your pitcher of choice for several years with little fuss or effort.
North American pitcher plants, Sarracenia, are endangered because so much of their natural habitat, along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, has been drained and developed. There is precious little land left where they can naturally grow undisturbed. Enthusiasts all over North America have risen to the challenge of preserving, and further hybridizing these unusual plants in private gardens.
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There are a few basic conditions they need for survival, and these are conditions many of us can provide.
First, the soil: Sarracenia naturally grow in acidic, peaty bogs. Peat comes from decomposing mosses. There is little nutrition in this soil, but there is a measure of sand. Standard potting mixes aren’t a good choice, and pitcher plants won’t do well planted into clay or compost. However peat is readily available in most places where other specialized potting mixes are sold. Mix peat and sand together, and you have a good mix for growing your own pitcher plants.
Second, pitcher plants prefer full sun. They will grow in partial sun, but their colors are better, and growth more vigorous, if you give them six or more hours of sun each day.
Pitcher plants want consistently moist soil. Don’t let the soil dry out. It should vary in moisture content, though, from fully hydrated to moist. In other words, let the pitcher plants’ roots get some air from time to time so they don’t rot from constant standing water. You also don’t want the water in their soil to sour.
Finally, all Sarracenia need a few months of winter dormancy each year. In other words, don’t try to grow them as houseplants and keep them growing year round. Allow them a few months of rest, even if you live in zones 9 or 10.
You can leave your Sarracenia outdoors in the winter, unless you live north of Zone 7. Then, be guided by the natural zone of the species you are growing. Some species can survive colder temperatures than others. But you may be able to keep tender Sarracenia through the winter in a cold frame or cold greenhouse, even if you are living in Zone 5 or colder.
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If you can provide moist, peaty soil and full sun, you can grow a pitcher plant. Just remember that they are carnivorous, and the insects that wander into their tubular leaves provide all the nutrition they need, in addition to the sugars produced during photosynthesis. Never add fertilizer to your pitcher plants.
You can create your own little container bog in a pot. Choose a pot that will be large enough to hold your plant when it grows to maturity. While some pitchers, like Sarracenia purpurea may grow to only a few inches tall, other species, like Sarracenia flava may grow to 40″ or more. Taller pitchers will need more substantial pots, of course.
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I ordered Sarracenia ‘Tarnok’ from Sarracenia Northwest about a month ago. It has been growing on in its nursery pot in my larger bog garden since. But now I’m ready to move it to a miniature bog garden on my deck.
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If your pot has a drainage hole, then keep it in a shallow container with an inch or two of standing water. If your pot doesn’t have a drain hole, then let the soil begin to dry out a little bit in the top few inches between waterings. Many experts suggest watering with rainwater, spring or distilled water. I have to admit that I often use tap water.
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This is the first pitcher plant I brought home some years ago. Planted in a mixture of peat and sand, the pot sat in a saucer filled with gravel and water.
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Abundant moss often covers the natural bogs where pitcher plants grow in the wild. Moss is the appropriate ground cover for a container bog, as well. The pitcher plant you find at a local garden center, or that you order through the mail, may already have moss growing in its pot when you get it. Just keep the soil moist, and that moss will keep on growing.
If your new pitcher doesn’t come with its own moss, you can transplant moss you collect onto the soil of your container bog.
I prefer to cover the bottom of my closed container with a few inches of sand to serve as a drainage area and reservoir. Then, I fill the rest of the container with a moist blend of pure peat and coarse sand. You can make your mix with up to half sand. My mix is about 1/4 sand by volume.
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Pack the peat mixture fairly tightly in the bottom and onto the sides of your pot, leaving a well about the same size as the pitcher’s nursery pot. Carefully tip the nursery pot over, supporting the soil mass with one hand, leaves through your spread fingers, and tap the bottom and sides to loosen the root ball.
Gently invert the freed roots, original soil, and leaves as you slip the entire mass into the well you’ve created. Gently pack additional moist peat mix into any open space around your plant’s roots.
Leave an inch or so of head space between the top of the finished soil and the rim of your pot, then gently water until there is a little standing water on top of the soil.
Finish your pot with bits of wild moss, if you choose, or with fine, clean gravel. I often add a few bits of glass or stones on top of the soil, too.
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Pitcher plant, Sarracenia leucophylla, native to the Southeastern United States, in its first season in our garden. I eventually moved this growing plant into a larger pot and added it to our bog garden.
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Site your new pitcher plant in any sunny spot outdoors where you can relax and enjoy it. Even though your newly purchased plant may have tiny leaves when you get it, it will bulk up with time. Soon, you will see it mature into its potential.
I usually move my potted bog gardens under shelter in heavy rain, since there is nowhere for overflow to drain. While the plants won’t mind sitting in water for a day or two, let the excess water evaporate so the top few inches of soil are just moist before watering again. Peat holds a lot of water, and you never want it to dry out entirely.
Just as in nature, let the moisture content of the soil vary.
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Pitcher plants are found in abundance at Forest Lane Botanicals in York County, where owner Alan Wubbels propagates several species.
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I began with a single pitcher. I was a little unsure whether I was really interested in pitcher plants, but soon grew fascinated with these strangely beautiful plants. My collection continues to grow, and my ‘wish list’ for different species and cultivars grows as I learn more about them.
You will find many sources for native pitcher plants once you begin looking for them. I bought an unnamed Sarracenia at the Great Big Greenhouse in the Richmond area this spring. They had a fine display of various carnivorous plants, and I bought a Venus flytrap, which is native to coastal North Carolina, at the same time.
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The Venus flytrap is another native carnivorous plant that has become endangered in recent years as its natural habitat has been developed. These are hardy and relatively easy to grow, if you provide the growing conditions they require. The leaves close to digest insects that wander onto the leaf pads.
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I hope you will give these beautiful plants a try. Maybe you, too, will discover their charm and beauty, and will dedicate a bit of your gardening space to preserving these amazing native carnivorous plants.
Woodland Gnome 2017
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Forest Garden 