Little Shop Of Horrors

Day 214: Any time I've posted a picture and description of Sarracenia, the comments invariably include some reference to Audrey from "Little Shop of Horrors" (a film I had never seen until recently). You see, she's carnivorous...well, technically "insectivorous," but you get the idea. She eats bugs by the hundreds. In fact, the saucer of water in which she rests her feet is a breeding ground for mosquito larvae, but the air around her is remarkably mosquito-free. She has some help from another Pitcher (a different variety) with an equally prodigious appetite, and between the two of them, they maintain my back porch as one of the few places in my yard where I can sit without being eaten alive.

I've had her for four or five years now, and each year, she's rewarded me with one or two bizarre flowers. The stems stand well above her pitchers, rising 16-18" above the pot. When fully open, the blossom shows an umbrella-shaped structure in the center, five tongue-like petals draped around the dome. Last year, a third bud appeared but did not mature. This year, she has FOUR, each of which has been visibly swelling over the last several hot days, and new pitchers are developing to replace those nipped by frost when I accidentally left her outside on a 22-degree night. She's a hardy one, Audrey, but that was a bit much to ask.