Dicon Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 Hi All Time for a few pics of this years crop I've had this plant for a few years now and after a couple of years doing very little, has this year popped out some better pitchers. This little fella is the first one this year, not a fully mature pitcher but progressing. it's just over 2.5 inches high. Next leaf produced this one, quite a good jump in size, and the next leaf is growing a good sized bean too. You may now wish to sit down Moving on to the little-ones best friend and bodyguard This is the biggest pitcher my "Larjah rajah" has produced thus far..............you may recognise the little fella sat in his lap!! Shots of the plant The tendril heading off to the left is about 24 inches and............................... ........has this at the end of it, It is not actually so big as the one above, but still stands over 10 inches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Hewitt Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 (edited) I hate to reply without an actual reason other that WOW!!! But. WOW!! now it's time to Edited August 7, 2011 by Peter Hewitt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
botervliegje Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 I hope, someday..., that I will have one like that !! It looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchasselblad74 Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 THat is a MonsTer Nepenthes in your hands, but very handsome indeed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheInactiveMoth Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 Amazing plant!!! Just a shame they grow so slowly, or I'd get one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicon Posted August 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 Amazing plant!!! Just a shame they grow so slowly, or I'd get one. There are a number of Neps I would describe as slow, but rajah is not one of them, it just needs to be happy and it soon becomes quite large, it is simply one of the most rewarding species to grow. If you have the space, try it you'll love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Davies Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 I hate to ask this Dicon- but can you share your conditions? I'm going to have to confess- rajah is the one plant that I simply haven't been able to get to grips with. I think you're right in that once it's happy it grows away well- but the problem is making it happy. I had a nice one from BE when I started growing Neps; I potted it in a mix of orchid bark, peat and perlite, and keeping it between 15 and 20 degrees, it made no growth at all for 6 months. I then moved it to a new dedicated Nep zone in the greenhouse, where it had 13-15 at night, 20-30 degrees by day, and it started putting out a new leaf every 2 weeks- but then I think the compost broke down and it expired. I've got a new one, featured in my recent "crap plants" thread, another BE one: it arrived with no roots- and again, had made no growth (my greenhouse is now cycling around 13 at night, but no more than 22 by day generally. Too cool by day?) The best I've done so far are two babies from Wistuba, tiny plants, which are in my usual mix of 80%perlite, 20% peat, and these are growing happily. But they're really, really, small- and only increasing in size slowly, leaf by leaf. That means approx 10 years until decent pitchers. SIGH. I have a feeling that rajah is very picky- it needs cool nights (under 13C) and hot days (over 22C) ; it doesn't like wet feet; it needs a few months to settle down; it can't stand being moved- even slightly- but if it's happy, it grows a new leaf every 2 weeks, which is actually pretty fast for a highlander. What does everyone reckon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicon Posted August 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 Hi Gareth, your current conditions are pretty close to mine temperature-wise, I keep a min of 10 in the summer and used to cool with A/C but now let the weather dictate although I get some extra cooling from the hydrofogger. I think good light levels and high humidity are important. Upper temps average about 22 but can spike at 26 but humidity will always be high. Larjah rajah is now in a very open mix of quality orchd bark, charcoal and live moss, removed from a peaty mix having almost lost it a few years back due to over wet rootzone. That said, I do generally grow very wet with auto sprayers, hence the very open mix, (there are usually pools with algae growing in the dimples on the leaves above the tendril insertion!) Winter temps bottom out at 6 averaging 8, the 2 plants in the foreground (centre and right) are villosa so you can see that this whole area is ultra HL and pretty damp. Be consistent and give your plant a chance and once it settles in it will suddenly start up. Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lumb Posted August 9, 2011 Report Share Posted August 9, 2011 Matt nice plant, is this the same pitcher that opened prematurely but continued to grow. I have to agree I personally dont find rajah a slow grower I can name half a dozen plants that one would expect to be faster but arent in my hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Davies Posted August 9, 2011 Report Share Posted August 9, 2011 Thanks Matt. Like so many Neps, it's a question of working out exactly what the plant needs- then it'll suddenly become "easy". Maybe the high humidity is more critical than for other species. Anyway- awesome plant you have there... I think like villosa, many plants are bought but very few ever reach maturity.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keefy Posted August 23, 2011 Report Share Posted August 23, 2011 Beautiful plants and i am green with envy, i bought one from a garden center which i believe is N.Ventrata it grew leaf and nothing but leaf, and in the end i had to cut it back last year, so that gave me cuttings, all but one rooted in fact one of them has a 4" pitcher, as for the mother plant after three years she's throwing out three 5" pitchers and more to come, As for compost she's in orchid compost and live moss, watered one a month with coffee, so yes i,m made up, if i had the space would love to try some of types. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flytyer Posted August 23, 2011 Report Share Posted August 23, 2011 Fantastic plant Dicon, now who do I have to kill to get one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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