Do Not Tickle

Day 309: The fortuituous timing of a post from Watson's Nursery and the date submissions were due for the Puyallup Fair couldn't have conveyed a clearer message: I needed to make another pass at keeping a Venus Fly-trap alive. My success in that regard has been rather limited in the past, with something like six months as the record, but even at that, it was fun while it lasted. I've had greater luck with other carnivorous species, but lost my last Sarracenia when an exceptionally hard frost dropped without warning a few years ago. I have not been able to replace the plant, but hope to do so at some point because it gave me many years of faithful anti-mosquito guard duty. Venus, of course, will live indoors. She's not as hardy as Sarracenia. One word of caution: she does not like being tickled. If her traps close on empty air, they are likely to digest themselves.

Pinguicula Vulgaris

Day 230: Some Latin binomials confuse the tongue so much that a large number of botanists may be heard referring to certain plants by their common names; case in point, Pinguicula vulgaris. "Pin-GWICK-yu-luh" is not an easy word to pronounce, but "Butterwort" is. The "vulgaris" portion of its scientific name means "common," but this plant has only recently been removed from the "Rare, Threatened and Sensitive" list. It is one of a handful of insectivorous plants found in Washington, and only occurs in certain pocket ecologies. It dines on the gnats, mosquitoes and other small insects which are attracted to a sticky substance exuded by its leaves, digesting their soft parts by means of a secondary enzyme which converts them into utilizable nutrients. The yellow-green leaves may look like they have black freckles, but a closer look will show the spots to be insect exoskeletal material, the remains of Pinguicula's leisurely meal.

Yellowjackets

Day 240: The Yellowjackets are out! No, I'm not talking about the stinging insects. I'm talking about the pair of blooms on my Sarracenia "Yellowjacket." It's easy to see how the varietal got its name with its delicious lemony yellow petals. To be completely honest, I divided and repotted my carnivores this spring and the foliage is not doing well. Rubra has yet to put on any new growth after putting up several small, feeble flowers. The issue might be due to transplanting or it may be a response to too-cold winter nights on the porch. Although I could replace them fairly easily, I will still attempt to nurse these back to health. After all, they've been with me for quite a few years now.

Sweet Nepenthes

Day 296: The latest addition to my collection of insectivores is a commercially-grown Pitcher Plant (Nepenthes sp.). This particular species is not outdoors-hardy and therefore hangs above my kitchen sink where it will receive its requirements for light and humidity. Native to the islands of the South Pacific, these plants' "pitchers" are in fact the termini of highly specialized leaves. Each leaf produces an extension of its midrib (referred to as a tendril), at the tip of which the characteristic trap develops. The pitchers contain a syrupy fluid comprised of biopolymers and enzymes which allows the plants to drown and digest insects and other small prey. Some of the larger Nepenthes species are capable of consuming lizards, rats and other prey of similar size. Don't worry, I'm not sticking my finger in there!

Not Quite In Bloom

Day 277: Invariably, the Sundew logs are my first port of call on Lake St. Clair. When I arrived beside them Friday morning, I observed lots of little buds at the ends of the shepherd's-crook stems, some of which showed evidence of white petals at their tips, but no fully open flowers. There also appeared to be a number of spent blooms which should have communicated vital information to me, but in my enthusiasm for the plants, I missed the message entirely. The Aha Moment came several hours later while I was paddling in the arm of the X-shaped lake farthest from my little friends. There were no open blossoms because the blossoms open in the afternoon! By then, my arms and back were too tired to make a return trip (Lake St. Clair has 11 miles of shoreline and I'd covered roughly 7.5 of it). Looks like another sail is in order, not only to pluck the Jewelweed from its anchorage but to capture the elusive flowers of Drosera rotundifolia.

The Face Of Venus

Day 274: I have limited success growing Venus Fly-Traps and have never had one survive more than about 8 months in my care. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy them, so when my last one failed to sprout after its winter dormancy, I bought a new one. I've had it for about two months now, and the little darling has decided to put on a show of flowers! Individual florets seem to succeed one another, i.e., one blooms as another bud is swelling, with the first flower near the end of its cycle just as the second bursts. Given that, I expect that not all buds will mature, and that successive flowers will be smaller than the earlier ones. Don't be fooled by the background; Venus is a houseplant in our climate, and no doubt about it. I just took her outside for the photo.

Butterwort, Pinguicula Vulgaris

Day 254: Pinguicula vulgaris (Butterwort) is not a new plant for my list, but it is one I monitor because it is relatively uncommon. It is insectivorous. It snares and digests its prey via secretions from two different types of specialized glands within its tongue-like basal leaves (the yellow-green foliage in the center of this photo). These glands also produce a bactericide which slows the decay process, allowing Butterwort to dine at leisure on the nutrients it extracts from small insects. It prefers a consistently damp environment such as the one shown here: a vertical rock face which drips continuously even in late summer. As you might imagine, some sacrifices of comfort were required to obtain this photo. Sodden sleeves and wet knees are just a few of the occupational hazards appurtenant to botany.

Carnivore Carnival

Day 246: Sarracenia Carolina Yellow Jacket (left) has presented her first two flowers this year, both open as of this writing. I had wondered how they would compare with those of her cousin Audrey (Sarracenia rubra, right). She is less flamboyant. Rubra comes on stage in a rush of scarlet ruffles; Yellow Jacket enters gracefully in a sleek gown of palest yellow tastefully accented with red. Rubra has the most buds ever: seven in various stages of development, only one of which is fully open.

These flowers are remarkably long-lived when compared with other plants. Each individual blossom maintains its colour for several weeks, slowly turning brown but never going limp or watery. When completely dry, they are somewhat withered, but the petals are less fragile than one might expect. They would make a nice addition to a dried arrangement if it wasn't for all the dead bugs trapped inside!

Sarracenia Season

Day 231: The Sarracenias are budding! Those of my readers who have been following me for some years know about the two carnivores who protect my back porch from mosquitoes. "Audrey" (named after the plant in "Little Shop of Horrors") is Sarracenia rubra, a species whose pitchers grow to about 12" in height; the other is Sarracenia x Carolina Yellow Jacket (unnamed as of this writing), its pitchers much shorter (about 8" maximum) and stouter than those of rubra, and morphologically different as well. Rubra (left) has bloomed in growing numbers each of the last four or five years, the stalks rising to 18", terminating in an enormous and unusually-shaped red flower. This year, she has produced SEVEN buds! I've only had Yellow Jacket (right) for a couple of years, and although it bore one or two small buds last year, they did not mature. I am confident that the two buds shown in the photo will develop fully, and I'm anxious to see what form the blossom takes.

These Pitchers are hardy in our Pacific Northwest winters, although I bring them indoors when temperatures drop below the mid-twenties. The foliage suffers some light frost damage even so, but new pitchers begin growing concurrently with the development of the inflorescences. At this point, the new pitchers are still quite small on both plants, but a number of older ones have remained viable, ready to devour any hapless bugs who venture into their interiors. Every year when I trim back the frost-nipped tips, I am surprised to see just how well they've done their job. Invariably, the husks of dead insects fill each one to a depth of four or five inches, accumulated from the previous summer.

The Maw

Day 347: Without having seen "Little Shop of Horrors," it took me a while to find out what my friends meant when they'd say, "Feed me, Seymour!" in response to my posts about the collection of carnivores living on my back porch. I finally watched the original movie a few months ago, and although I now understand the reference, I can't for the life of me figure out how such an obvious plot twist and cliché filmography earned the film cult status. At some point, I will watch the modern version, although I suspect that it will offer more gore (something I can do without), but nothing to improve the premise. Let's see...the original Rod Serling "Twilight Zone" must have had a version, and its precursor "Tales of Tomorrow" certainly did. Both pre-dated "Little Shop" by a decade or more. Fun if you're 11 or 12, not so attention-grabbing once you've passed through adolescence.

So...movie critiques aside, this is Sarracenia x Carolina Yellowjacket, my "other" Sarracenia. It has wider but shorter pitchers than Sarracenia rubra (background), but their unique, somewhat portly shape suggests that this plant can consume a lot more bugs. Like rubra, its pitchers are lined with downward-pointing hairs which guide insects first into the throat and then into a pool of digestive enzymes at the bottom. There's no escape for the hapless fly who lands here! To date, Yellowjacket has not bloomed for me, but it has filled its pot to the point that I'll have to divide it next spring. Say bye-bye, bugs! You're doomed!

Death Traps

Day 334: The Door Wardens are hard at work. As I was taking this photo of Sarracenia rubra, a Bald-Faced Hornet landed on the uppermost tip of another trap out of frame and began edging toward the depths of the pitcher, lured by the odor of Sarracenia's previous victims. If you look closely at the photo, you may be able to discern the fine downward-pointing hairs which are this carnivore's secret of success. The hornet was compelled to continue on a descending path by their angle and in very short order, had passed the point of no return from which it could not fly free. There, it will be digested by enzymes in the liquid in the bottom of the trap, providing the plant with a nutritious meal.

Odd as it may seem, this Sarracenia as well as some others are hardy in our northern climate. Mine live in saucers of water on the back porch and will be left out until nighttime temperatures drop to the mid-twenties. This Sarracenia has survived in my care for a number of years now, and has so abundantly filled its pot that I will need to divide it next spring, likewise a second species called "Carolina Yellowjacket." Although they don't do a perfect job of keeping my porch mosquito-free, they certainly put a dent in the population.

Drosera Rotundifolia: A Profile

Day 282: I began yesterday's kayak trip with a visit to the Sundews, only to find that while some of them appeared to be in the flowering stage with white petal tips showing, none of the flowers was open. Closer analysis revealed spent blooms, the withered, browned petals visible above the calyces. Some of the older inflorescences demonstrated developing seed pods, and some younger stalks carried full cymes of unopened buds. The accumulation of evidence led to a conclusion: the little buggers had closed up for the night and would open later in the day. Early bird that I am, the proverbial worm wasn't out of bed yet. I did the only sensible thing: took photos of the various stages and then went off for a paddle on the rest of the lake. When I returned in the afternoon, I found several open flowers, and it was interesting to note that when a cloud drifted across the sun, they closed quickly, responding rather more slowly in comparison as they re-opened when the sun emerged.

Drosera rotundifolia (and indeed other Drosera species) presents a fascinating natural history. They thrive in an ecology where other vascular plants might starve, and do so by supplementing their nutritional requirements carnivorously. Additionally, they survive in low pH (acidic) conditions where soil is almost non-existent, their shallow root systems serving largely to anchor them in place. Their laminae (paddle-shaped leaves) are covered with gland-tipped hairs which secrete a sticky substance containing digestive enzymes capable of dissolving all but the exoskeleton of insects including gnats, mosquitoes, beetles and even damselflies (see yesterday's post) as well as arachnids. They prefer high-moisture conditions, often growing right at waterline. In winter, the laminae curl up tightly to form a basal rosette called a hibernaculum. This structure conserves heat and prevents the plants from freezing. It's the only phase of their life-cycle I have yet to photograph, but then, botany ain't for wimps.

Fatally Attracted

Day 281: After a busy June and early July, I finally got out in the kayak today and witnessed first-hand the capture of several blue damselflies by the Sundews of Lake St. Clair. I had wondered how large an insect they might be able to trap with those sticky little hairs, but I never suspected the degree of efficiency I observed here. Almost as soon as a damsel alighted, its feet became ensnared. As it struggled to free itself, its wings and tail were trapped by adjacent Drosera pads, and the enzymes started their work. It only took a few minutes for the insect's activity to cease as it began to be digested. Abundant evidence of prior meals remained among the hungry foliage, proof that those dainty little Sundews can take on a hefty bug despite their size. More on Drosera tomorrow!

She Of The Six Flowers

Day 246: This bit of botanical news comes from the home front: Sarracenia surprised me by putting up a total of SIX flowers this year! In 2015, two went to maturity and a third failed to develop, so I expected three at most. The winter cold nipped most of her pitchers when a 22-degree night caught me left-footed. I move her to an indoor "cold-room" (the old furnace closet) when temps are forecast to go below 24. As exotic as she appears, this species and indeed several other members of the genus are hardy in the Pacific Northwest climate. The loss of the majority of her traps didn't slow her up, though. More have sprouted to replace those which were damaged by frost, to the extent that I may have to divide the plant after she's done flowering. She's getting too big for her pot!

Let's Dew Dinner!

Day 231: Good weather convinced me I needed to make another kayak trip to check on my kids at Lake St. Clair. I'd hoped I might find them in bloom, but my records indicate I have at least four more weeks to wait for that event. In fact, I searched for any sign of blossom stalks arising today, but found none. On the other hand, I couldn't help but notice that the Sundews aren't suffering for lack of food, or for variety in their diet. Mosquitoes, wasps, beetles and even spiders provide a veritable smorgasbord of tasty treats.

But Sundews weren't the only interesting things I encountered during this trip. Over the next couple of days, I'll show you a few more reasons I love kayaking on Lake St. Clair.

Sarracenia

Day 223: Don't let her modesty fool you. Madame Sarracenia is dangerous...if you're a bug. Even the flowers of this Pitcher Plant can trap and digest the insects which venture inside the central dome-like structure hidden behind that coy veil of petals. Sarracenia rubra is a carnivore, one of two species I keep under cultivation in saucers of water on my back porch. Both are hardy in the Pacific Northwest, although when nights dip into the low 20s, I bring them indoors. This year, Madame Sarracenia has sent up four blossoms for me, each rising 14-18" above the rim of her pot. Only one is fully open at this time (it's tangerine-sized) and I suspect it will have faded by the time the last one opens. Hopefully, we'll have two at once at some point in the near future.

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.

Portrait Of A Carnivore

Day 203: Some wit once remarked that while we accept that bugs eat plants, it seems almost a violation of natural order for a plant to eat bugs. Drosera rotundifolia (Round-Leaved Sundew) has the practice down to a fine science. Each of the tiny hairs on its thumbnail-sized leaves is tipped with a gland which exudes a sticky, sugary fluid. The fluid serves to attract and trap insects, the soft parts of which are then digested by proteolytic enzymes and reduced to nutrients which the plant can utilize.

Since discovering Sundews on Lake St. Clair several years ago, each time I go kayaking on the lake, my first priority is to check on their status. One month ago, they were just beginning to emerge from hibernation. During their winter rest, new leaves can be observed only as tightly curled buds in a rosette. As temperatures warm in the spring, the leaves unfurl and begin to grow, to be followed by significantly taller scapes (flower-bearing stalks) in early summer (mid-July at the St. Clair location). The inflorescence may consist of up to 15 white five-petalled flowers. The plant propagates both by seed and vegetatively, but true to its name, the species is very intolerant of shady conditions. The colonies on a free-floating "island" of old dock timbers which drifted into a sheltered cove have declined radically since I first saw them. However, those growing on two logs anchored in full-day sun are thriving.

Houseguests

Day 77: In and out, in and out. Nights in the low twenties might be fine for Sarracenias living in a bog, but with no more soil around their roots than can be contained in a pot, that's the point at which I bring them indoors for a sleep-over. When morning comes, it's back out on the porch for both of them. As you can see, the system is working. Sarracenia rubra (right) has been with me for three winters, and has gone from a mere half dozen pitchers to a pot so crowded, I may have to divide it next spring. Carolina Yellow Jacket (left) was a new addition to my collection of carnivorous plants early this spring. It has also multiplied rapidly. As exotic as they appear, the Sarracenias are amazingly hardy!

Yellowjackets

Day 291: While we're on the subject of carnivorous plants (we were talking about Sundews day before yesterday), I am happy to report that my Sarracenia x Carolina Yellow Jacket has turned into a veritable grove of hungry pitchers and is keeping my back porch bug-free with the assistance of its companion, Sarracenia rubra. In this record-breaking heat, I top up their water saucers at least once a day to ensure that they have the proper boggy conditions their roots prefer, and although I often see mosquito larvae in the bowls, I have yet to see a single mosquito. They're doing a great job, my door wardens!