American Pitcher Plants (I think that's what they're called)

[electric.chowder]

Quick question. Here in the community I'm living in we have some american pitcher plants (not the ones that grow on a vine, but the vase/trumpet looking ones) and someone recently cut them down, angering a bunch of people, I just wanted to make sure that they'll grow back next season, and if I should maybe put some leaf coverage over them to help protect them this winter,

thanks!

-chowder

[tom499]

Sarrecenia are the plants I think you are referring too

I could do with a little more info about how they were cut down? The plants themselves go dormant in winter, the pitchers will die off and you will be left with a bulb in the ground.

As long as the ground hasn't been too disturbed they should be growing next year fine.

That is so cool to have them growing wild near you, so much of their habitat has been destroyed completely for housing etc, try and protect the area if you can, if there are other people angry about the damage hopefully you can organise some kind of government protection for them

[electric.chowder]

oh good, I went and actually checked out the situation with the plants today, and there were still about half or so of the pitchers left. They aren't wild, someone planted them in a bio filter pond type thing, there's also a happy little venus fly trap with them. Someone had just taken a pair of scissors and cut them, not pulled them up or anything, though they were really pretty in the flower arrangements they made. It was figured out who cut them, but when you live on a commune with a hundred people it's not that hard to figure out who did what, and an *angry* note was posted telling everyone not to cut them.

thanks!

-chowder

[Andrew]

The effect will no doubt be minimal. As Tom mentioned the plants will be heading into domancy soon so the rhizome should have built up sufficient nutrient supply during the growing season to cope with the pitchers being removed late in the season.

[mbasden]

The sarracenias wil survive the winter but be careful of the weather with the venus flytraps They are indigenous to a small part of North and South Carolina and the weather in VA might be too cold for them.