Hungering For The Right Plant
Mary Claire Rowe
Are you hungry for new plants for your garden? Are you tired of the same-old, same-old? Well look no further than this fantastic "meat" eating plant. No, not, the purple people-eater from that old song, but Sarracenia purpurea, the purple pitcher plant.
The one pictured today is a "Judith Hindle hybrid." I found it, of all places, in the grocery store. It was not anywhere near the meat department - management is smarter than that. It was in the flower shop, of course.
It caught my eye, because it was so beautiful and strange, with tall, hollow, green stalks, topped by mottled red, curly, fan-shaped flaps. I had to have it!
The one pictured today is a "Judith Hindle hybrid." I found it, of all places, in the grocery store. It was not anywhere near the meat department - management is smarter than that. It was in the flower shop, of course.
It caught my eye, because it was so beautiful and strange, with tall, hollow, green stalks, topped by mottled red, curly, fan-shaped flaps. I had to have it!
PURPLE PITCHER PLANT
"It is all for the sake of research, dear," I told my husband, as I put the plant in the cart. He gave me that "knowing'' look. He recognizes a plant addict, since he's married to one.
I told myself that I was interested, only because it brought to mind our Texas "Big Thicket" native, Sarracenia alata "Texas,'' which is an endangered species and off limits to all plant collectors. There in the grocery store, I had no idea the vast numbers and varieties of this species; I just wanted to find out if it was the same as the "Texas'' variety.
Since bringing it home, I have learned a lot more about it, and the nicest thing I have learned is that it can grow outside in Smith County. It is hardy to USDA Zone 7, and we are 7 and 8. It is easy to grow. It is one of the most prolific of the species and grows to about 12 inches in height. It will flower after five years from seedling, so I will have to wait to see how old my plant is. When it blooms, the blossom will be red, whereas, the native "Texas'' plant has yellow blossoms.
It is considered to be a "temperate perennial" and comes from North and South Carolina. It can be grown in full sun, and likes a boggy ground. Its growing season is April through November, and is considered to be frost tolerant.
It requires good mulch in colder regions, but I do not plan to take a chance with mine. I will probably put it in the garage in bad weather. There it will experience winter, but not a harsh one. I want our first year together to be a gentle one for this strange plant.
Drawn by its intoxicating aroma, flies, wasps, and ants make a straight path to the tubes. Seeking the nectar, they climb down the long stalk, which is made up of specially adapted leaves with downward facing hairs, and fall into the water in the bottom. The rest is a disgusting story of death and decay, but the plant is mighty happy with it, and gets its necessary nutrients this way.
Today, after I researched the plant, I realized it needed to be fed, as it had been sitting in the house on the table, ever since I brought it home last week, and hadn't had anything to eat. I thought I would give it a nice meal of the fire ants I had discovered yesterday in an out-of-the-way pot. However, when I moved the pot again this morning, all the ants had disappeared. Just when you want a fire ant, none are to be found.
So, I just put it outside, hoping for lots of insects to make their frantic way into pitcher plant's hungry little stomachs. I took a furtive sniff to see what might be alluring to them. I guess you have to be a fly to really appreciate it.
While searching for information on the Web, I discovered that there are many Web sites and organizations that love carnivorous plants. You can go to www.carnivorousplants.org, which is the site for "The Journal of the International Carnivorous Plant Society." Their sample monthly journal is an awesome 32 page compendium of facts and pictures.
There is also "The Botanical Society of America," which has been organized since 1893. Their Web site is http://www.botany.org/carnivorous_ plants/Sarracenia _ purpurea.php.
For a real change of place and a fee, you can join the "Carnivorous Plant-of-the-month Club." Just log on to http://www.cobr-aplant.com/carnivorousplantclub.html.
There are three gardens in the East Texas area that have these "happy in the wet lands'' plants, and that are wonderful places to visit. One is the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center at Athens. It has two large, man-made bog gardens, chock-dull of native Texas carnivorous plants.
The second is The Big Thicket National Preserve -- Turkey Creek Unit, which is down Hwy 69 at Warren. Turn east on CR1943, drive over Turkey Creek, and look for the sign proclaiming "Pitcher plant trail" and follow the directions. This is a savanna (a grassy meadow which is wet part of the year) with one of the largest native Texas pitcher plant populations in Texas.
The third is Watson Pinelands Preserve, also near Warren. It is owned and managed by Geraldine Watson, a conservationist, artist, and legend in her own right. The preserve is a pineland savanna with a boardwalk running through it, and is open to the public free of charge. What a great plant for a gardener like me, who likes plants that are "easy-care.''
So, how easy can it be, when the plant can feed itself? Now, if I could just get my husband to do the same thing, but that is a whole 'nother story.
"What's Blooming In Our Garden'' is a regular feature of the Tyler Morning Telegraph Garden Page. It is written by Mary Claire Rowe, a Master Gardener with the Texas Cooperative Extension, and focuses on flowers and plant life around East Texas. To share your comments on gardening, write her in care of the Morning Telegraph.
I told myself that I was interested, only because it brought to mind our Texas "Big Thicket" native, Sarracenia alata "Texas,'' which is an endangered species and off limits to all plant collectors. There in the grocery store, I had no idea the vast numbers and varieties of this species; I just wanted to find out if it was the same as the "Texas'' variety.
Since bringing it home, I have learned a lot more about it, and the nicest thing I have learned is that it can grow outside in Smith County. It is hardy to USDA Zone 7, and we are 7 and 8. It is easy to grow. It is one of the most prolific of the species and grows to about 12 inches in height. It will flower after five years from seedling, so I will have to wait to see how old my plant is. When it blooms, the blossom will be red, whereas, the native "Texas'' plant has yellow blossoms.
It is considered to be a "temperate perennial" and comes from North and South Carolina. It can be grown in full sun, and likes a boggy ground. Its growing season is April through November, and is considered to be frost tolerant.
It requires good mulch in colder regions, but I do not plan to take a chance with mine. I will probably put it in the garage in bad weather. There it will experience winter, but not a harsh one. I want our first year together to be a gentle one for this strange plant.
Drawn by its intoxicating aroma, flies, wasps, and ants make a straight path to the tubes. Seeking the nectar, they climb down the long stalk, which is made up of specially adapted leaves with downward facing hairs, and fall into the water in the bottom. The rest is a disgusting story of death and decay, but the plant is mighty happy with it, and gets its necessary nutrients this way.
Today, after I researched the plant, I realized it needed to be fed, as it had been sitting in the house on the table, ever since I brought it home last week, and hadn't had anything to eat. I thought I would give it a nice meal of the fire ants I had discovered yesterday in an out-of-the-way pot. However, when I moved the pot again this morning, all the ants had disappeared. Just when you want a fire ant, none are to be found.
So, I just put it outside, hoping for lots of insects to make their frantic way into pitcher plant's hungry little stomachs. I took a furtive sniff to see what might be alluring to them. I guess you have to be a fly to really appreciate it.
While searching for information on the Web, I discovered that there are many Web sites and organizations that love carnivorous plants. You can go to www.carnivorousplants.org, which is the site for "The Journal of the International Carnivorous Plant Society." Their sample monthly journal is an awesome 32 page compendium of facts and pictures.
There is also "The Botanical Society of America," which has been organized since 1893. Their Web site is http://www.botany.org/carnivorous_ plants/Sarracenia _ purpurea.php.
For a real change of place and a fee, you can join the "Carnivorous Plant-of-the-month Club." Just log on to http://www.cobr-aplant.com/carnivorousplantclub.html.
There are three gardens in the East Texas area that have these "happy in the wet lands'' plants, and that are wonderful places to visit. One is the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center at Athens. It has two large, man-made bog gardens, chock-dull of native Texas carnivorous plants.
The second is The Big Thicket National Preserve -- Turkey Creek Unit, which is down Hwy 69 at Warren. Turn east on CR1943, drive over Turkey Creek, and look for the sign proclaiming "Pitcher plant trail" and follow the directions. This is a savanna (a grassy meadow which is wet part of the year) with one of the largest native Texas pitcher plant populations in Texas.
The third is Watson Pinelands Preserve, also near Warren. It is owned and managed by Geraldine Watson, a conservationist, artist, and legend in her own right. The preserve is a pineland savanna with a boardwalk running through it, and is open to the public free of charge. What a great plant for a gardener like me, who likes plants that are "easy-care.''
So, how easy can it be, when the plant can feed itself? Now, if I could just get my husband to do the same thing, but that is a whole 'nother story.
"What's Blooming In Our Garden'' is a regular feature of the Tyler Morning Telegraph Garden Page. It is written by Mary Claire Rowe, a Master Gardener with the Texas Cooperative Extension, and focuses on flowers and plant life around East Texas. To share your comments on gardening, write her in care of the Morning Telegraph.
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