Fertilizing Neps

[artificialive]

Hi all,
Just wanna bring up this topic becos it seems to me like a controversial subject. Some growers have successfully grown their neps without fertilizers and some, with fertilizers. Recently, a member of this forum pointed out that neps are heavy feeders and i'm quite agreed. With the green leaves to photosynthesize, they still need pitchers to supplement their hunger.

Some growers use osmocotes because its a slow release fert, but if the shell are broken, they are not slow releasing anymore. Some of us also use a very very diluted orchid fertilizers, with a variety of end results.

So perhaps if any growers here in the forum had successfully fertilize their neps, it would be very beneficial for us as a whole to share the 'recipe' of the fertilizers used, techniques and precautions taken in order to feed our beloved CPs with chemical elements

Naj

[plantlover]

Two years ago, I used normal fertilizers to fertilize my plants along with my amp(Now its dead ). Growed and pitchered well. Don't know what brand, just simply put on all my plants. After fertilizing, it became crazy and from 4-5 pitcher it became10-15 pitcher. When I bought it, it was growing on the ground but after a few weeks it started climbing too. Don't know what happen. Aren't amps suppose to grow on the ground?

[artificialive]

Thanks for your views, plantlover. May i ask, what do u mean as normal fertilizers?
Do u refer it as manure pellets, chicken/ goat?

Abt ur amp, i think at some certain level, amps will climb too. Thats why they also produce upper pitchers

Naj

[jk]

I fertilize my Neps every two weeks (or try to, anyway) with a mixture of fish fertilizer at half strength, seaweed extract, and SuperThrive. Every month or so I make compost tea and feed it to my plants.

[artificialive]

Jk,
Thanks for your respond.
How do u fertilize your neps? Do u spray the emulsion on the leaves or to the medium?
and when u said u feed ur plants, do u meen u put the food inside the pitchers?

Naj

[bactrus]

Plantlover: normal fertiliser means foliar (liquid spray on) fertiliser or those organic/manure type which you put in soil.

I agree with Naj, slow release is good only when the shell is intact. Once broken, it is like full dose of chemical fertiliser all at once. Just a note: Slow release ir sensitive to heat and moisture. In Malaysia purportedly 9 mths slow release only good for maybe 6 mths, depending on conditions; mainly due to the above two factors mentioned.

So the case now is which is better: Slow release, Normal compound fertiliser, Foliar (both spray on leaves or in water tray), Organic. Think we'll have a poll.

[isaacgoh]

Naj,

I am using Miracid sparingly (diluted) for my neps few times already and they seem to grow better.

I put them into spray bottle and spray on the leaves and medium.

Rgds,
Isaac

[hongrui]

i pour my fert cocktail directly over the neps and into the media. it is my personal opinion that when more light is provided, the rate of metabolism of the neps increase and thus the plants will be better able to make use of the nutrients from fertiliser.

[bactrus]

So the roots of the neps have more use than just translocating water. Minerals are absorbed too.

Hmmm.... what if we inoculate the plant with rhizobium. Anyone keen to try? Lifetime supply of nitrogen source be pretty much supplied if successful. Tried on my orchids, not successful.

[phissionkorps]

Spraying the leaves of Nepenthes is more or less wasting your time. Nutrients are best absorbed: pitchers > roots >> leaves

[artificialive]

Hi PK,
Thanks for responding
What method do u use to fertilize your neps?
And can u clarify why nutrients are best absorbed from pitchers > roots >> leaves? From your experience i suppose?

[phissionkorps]

Personally, I use Schultz Orchid fertilizer at full strength (1/4th teaspoon in 1 gal water) every 2 weeks. I just water the plants with it until it drips out the bottom.

One time, I had a bunch of GA3 and nothing to do with it. I mixed up a quantity in the same concentration. I soaked a nep by spraying down the leaves with the solution. Another, I watered through the media, a third, I placed the solution in the pitchers. The plant with the solution placed in the pitchers exhibited gross morphological changes one would expect from an auxin for over a year. The plant that was watered through the media with the solution exhibited the same type of changes, but it only lasted about 8 months. The plant that was sprayed on the leaves.....did more or less nothing (and therefore needed no recovery).

[jk]

Artificialive, I pour both the fertilizer and compost tea onto the medium.

I'd like to caution those who are going to try salt-based fertilizer. Remember to flush out the medium with water regularly to prevent salt from building up in the medium because it will draw water out of the plant. It's the same idea used in many recipes to pickle vegetables. A common step is to let the vegetable sit in a lot of salt for a while in order to get water out of the vegetable. That would not be good for Nepenthes, unless you want to pickle them. The problem does not exist with organic fertilizers.

[phissionkorps]

I flush my pots almost every time I water (once every 2-4 days), so I don't have a problem with salt buildup. However if you don't flush, you will

[artificialive]

Thanks all for giving different kind of views. Guess I shall start fertilizing my neps and see what effect it does

[ameliepoulain]

Naj, I can't find the thread where I spoke to you about fertilizing my neps. But here goes,

I feed 1- 3 osmocote bead into the pitchers. Usually it's just 1 per pitcher unless it those big pitchers of my xMiranda, then it's 2-3 beads.

So far so good.

[rainforestguy]

I see real advancements when others prescribe such a taboo subject that many opposed me when first reading of my fertilizing nepenthes. I wonder how long it will take when others come to the same conclusion regarding tc. Any way, its nice to see facts replacing myth.

M

[Ludwig]

yes Michael, you are THE pioneer in this area!

[Ludwig]

it is my personal opinion that when more light is provided, the rate of metabolism of the neps increase and thus the plants will be better able to make use of the nutrients from fertiliser.

This is important. Remember when using fertilizers on Nepenthes, they will not make much use of added fertilizer if conditions aren't otherwise favorable. This can't be stressed enough.

[phissionkorps]

I experimented with feeding osmocote pellets to the pitchers, but I didn't like it and stopped. Lots of pitchers turned black from it, and some plants rapidly lost a few of the bottom leaves even months after I stopped for no apparent reason.