N. spectabilis - Ugly Duckling?

[borneo]

Happy New Year Everyone!

We've got a TC clone of N. spectabilis that starts life with pitcher so green and boring that we nearly threw it away. Then the lower pitchers started to show some colour, and then a little more colour, until it started to produce pitchers like this:



Soooo, we decided to keep it after all and it got named "Ugly Duckling". Then recently it's started to produce uppers. I think they are about the most elegant and graceful upper pitchers of any Nepenthes I've seen in the flesh. Heres' one, there's nothing in the photo to show scale but it's easily 30cm (12") in height.



So, those of you with this clone, I suggest you let it vine!

[ameliepoulain]

ohmigod! the color on those peristomes!

adding that to my new year wishlist!

[David]

That's a very elegant upper. Indeed a beauty. I like the long slim shape of the pitcher. And the peristome colour is simply georgeous.

[nepenthesfreak]

Mine's finally pitchering, and under my pathetic 13% humidity conditions! A hardy plant indeed. I can't wait, both pictures are gorgeous. I remember staring at that first one on the Black Jungle website this time last year... the good old terrarium days .

[rainforestguy]

N. spectrabilis is a fantastic clone. To have a single ( and now another ONE) clone to represent this species is like trying to describe N. rafflesiana by just having a SINGLE clone available to collectors.
More available seed originals and future selective breeding will change this and make these tc clones obsolete!

M

[rainforestguy]

Here is a hybrid of N. gracilis x spectabilis!


This has the vigor and ease of growth of gracilis, with attractive pitchers of spectabilis thrown in.

M