Nephenthes Hookeriana from seed. a little help please.

[exoticplantman]

hi im new to this forum and very new to growing these magnificent plants from seed. i have a pitcher plant already but i have recently aquired some Nephenthes Hookeriana seeds and i would like to know how to grow them. i have had a look aroung the forum and have seen that a lot of people use sphagnam moss to propogate them. do you just put them onto the moss and in a well lit aria so they sprowt? i also need to know about any special precautions i must take before i sow them (e.g Ph and humidity temperature etc) if there is a thread with these questions answerd i have been unable to find it (and its 1.20 am now and my eyes are shutting so i thaught id just ask )

thanx in advance
-Alex

[David]

Step 1- Soak chopped up sphagnum moss in a diluted solution of insecticide and fungicide. This will kill any pest that may be present in the media. A lot of plantlets die shortly after germination because of pests and fungus. Place about 1 inch of the sphagnum moss in a tray. The potting media does not need to be deep as the seeds are tiny and their roots will not reach that deep anyway. If sphagnum moss is not available, you may use coconut peat. Other growers have had great success with coconut peat.

Step 2 - Sprinkle the seeds on top of the chopped up sphagnum moss and place it in a terrarium where humidity is high. If you do not have a terrarium, you may use those seedling trays specifically made to germinate seeds. There is a cover on top to keep the humidity high. Make sure the seeds receive bright light and warm temperature. You may sow the seeds on your current Pitcher Plant pots where they are thriving or place the seed trays in your greenhouse or shadehouse if you have one. If the environment suits the mature plants, it would be appropriate for the seedlings.

Step 3 - Make sure the potting media (sphagnum moss) is always wet. If possible water them from the bottom using the tray method. If you pour or spray water on top of the media, the water might wash the seeds into the media. The little plantlets might have difficulty reaching out of the media if they are buried under it. Then, they will not receive the light that they need and will die. Watering from the top when the plantlets have germinated will also injure or break their tiny and fragile stems or roots.

Step 4 - Now, all you have to do is just to wait. Leave the seeds alone. I know it is tempting to fiddle with them or move the tray around when you are trying to look for baby plantlets. But if you do that it really does not help the seeds in anyway but might disturb their growth. Germination will occur from 3 weeks to a few months depending on the freshness of the seeds and how well you treat them.

Step 5 - Once the seeds germinate, allow more air circulation around the plantlets, but please do this gradually or the seeds will wilt and die. This is more applicable if the seedling are placed inside a terrarium or seed tray where the humidity is very high. Air circulation will prevent damping off fungus from attacking the baby plantlets. This fungus looks like a layer of white hairy cotton wool on top of the media. Pests would also love to munch on your plantlets. So scrutinize the media for any pests. Use a diluted insecticide solution if there are any pests in the media.

Step 6 - Transplant the plantlets into individual pots when they start to crowd each other in the seed tray. Be careful not to disturb the roots. The plantlets will take 2-4 years to reach a reasonable size.

[exoticplantman]

wow that was in depth
thankyou so much for tis i will plant them today. i can see myself getting into this now some of the plants on this forum are beautifull. thanks again

-Alex