Revisiting UNH's Collection

Pinguicula laueana

Back on April 1 and 2, 2016, I was also able to visit, assess, and take photos of UNH's collection. That wonderful opportunity came about because I was scheduled to give a talk about growing carnivorous plants in New England as part of the open days for the University of New Hampshire greenhouses. I think that the most eye catching of the collection was this Pinguicula laueana, which was in full flower, but I have plenty of photos throughout this post to keep you satiated.

Utricularia sandersonii "Blue"

The talk itself was a heck of a lot of fun. I really hope to do it again next year. It was really great to be able to talk about building bog gardens and growing plants indoors, too. It was my first experience giving a talk like that, and I anticipate that future ones will be even better.

Sarracenia purpurea sbsp. burkii

As far as UNH's collection goes, it was great to revisit a collection that I last saw about a year ago, and first helped repot a couple years ago. Over the past couple years, maintenance has been intermittent, so there's a bit of work to do. As a consequence, I have the great pleasure of going back in a couple weeks and helping UNH repot and do some maintenance.

"Voodoo Lily"

While at UNH, I did enjoy some time visiting with the less carnivorous plants, including this one. Although stinky, it was great to see a plant that - accidentally - assisted my beloved carnivores attract insects.

Pinguicula 'Aphrodite'

There were many Pings flowering throughout UNH's collection. Spring seems to be the time when these guys love to flower in New England, and there was a neat display.

Pinguicula Clump

After looking over the Pings, I noticed that they were in need of a repot. Last time, we didn't use a pure mineral media, and it appeared that the peat had degraded significantly over the past couple year. As a consequence, there were a number of plants which were not looking good. That said, the majority of the collection was doing just fine.

Utricularia alpina

Some Utrics, such as this Utricularia alpina, also needed a media refresh. Over time, the media had dissolved out of the pot to the point where there was very little left. So, perhaps, it isn't in need of a media refresh so much as a media addition.

Heliamphora heterodoxa x minor

Other plants, such as this Heli, had grown so massive that they were starting to burst out of their pots. It's time for a larger pot (or divisions).

Catopsis berteroniana

Then, there were a few plants which really have no media. These were, of course, the fantastic bromeliads that UNH grows. These two carnivores are quite interesting and, I believe, among the largest specimens in cultivation.

Brocchina reducta

Such great plants! I really enjoy seeing them.

Sarracenia 'Judith Hindle'

In addition to those Ping flowers, the Sarrs were also out in force. It was quite a sight!

Sarracenia leucophylla 'Tarnok'

One of my favorites was this Sarracenia leuco 'Tarnok'. It's a very interesting flower. I hope mine flowers this year.

Sarracenia purpurea sbsp. burkii

One of the best represented subspecies of Sarracenia at UNH is Sarracenia purpurea sbsp. burkii. I was able to easily tag quite a few Sarracenia purpurea as burkii thanks to their profuse, light pink flowers.

Nepenthes graciliflora

I also took photos of some Nepenthes. Many need to be repotted, but, of those growing well, the best pitchering one was certainly this N. graciliflora, which has been full of pitchers every time that I've seen it growing.

Nepenthes maxima

I also had to take a photo of this massive Nepenthes maxima. It wasn't pitchering during this visit and I don't have a photo of the whole plant from before, but it has grown substantially since I last saw it. Now, this plant towers at about 4 feet tall and has multiple growth points. Quite incredible!

Female Nepenthes Flower

A few Nepenthes were in flower, too. The most interesting one was this female Nepenthes. I didn't bother to see what species/hybrid it was. I'll take a look in a couple weeks. There were a number of males which appeared to have been in flower at the same time, so if seed is produced as a consequence, I would not be surprised.

Heliamphora Flower

Lastly, I wanted to share this fading Heliamphora flowerstalk. None of the flowers were pollinated, but it was still interesting to see the remnants of the flower.