Look at this little smorgasbord terrarium which includes a Sarracenia, a Drosera, and a Dionaea. Planting those together is about the equivalent of planting an Oak, a Palm Tree, and a Cactus together and expecting them to survive. The Dionaea in the box is already dead and the other two are on their way out but... somebody will buy this for $12.99.
This Nepenthes is history-
In that last photo, there was a Sarracenia purpurea behind it that was so light deprived it had no color and appeared to be anthocyanin free- but it wasn't.
Going back to the photo of the $4.99 plants, they had Darlingtonia californica rammed into little plastic coffins and every single one was dead. Those are really tricky plants to grow. A member here named Pixydish grows them in her back yard effortlessly but she gardens in their natural range. Me, I have to put them in open aquatic basket pots lined with Long Fibred Sphagnum Moss in an eastern exposure inside my home and I had to drop rain water ice cubes in their drip trays every morning to keep their roots cool to be able to get a plant that looked decent. I didn't want to keep up with meeting the needs of those plants so I shipped them off to a friend.
It was interesting that the grow instructions on the packaging were the same for every plant that was being sold to include the Dionaea and the Sarracenia which are both temperate species requiring a dormancy so they need to be planted outside year round (with some winter protection in my zone). The Drosera and maybe some of the Pinguicula they were selling should grow just fine based on their instructions providing... they don't get watered with tap water.
And, my kids were tugging at my sleeve to buy these plants even when I literally grow hundreds and hundreds of them here. Great marketing!
Next spring we can all pick apart the labeling on the plastic baggies and sawdust filled boxes when the sales racks go up. I literally ran across this display of wetland species plants this morning while picking up safflower seed at Lowes.
I truly believe the above photos illustrate why it is best to buy from your local nurseries or quality online suppliers. At least you generally get a little help with caring for your plants when you ask.
Equil,
If they let enough plants die, the suits at the top will see declining margins and cut the program. Let's hope that these plants are "martyrs" for the cause. They do a good job on their marketing like you say, so............
Regards,
Ernie
