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Are my neps getting too much light?


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I posted recently about my lighting experiment, which seems to be going well on the whole. However, I've noticed that my two Nepenthes Bloody Mary have red on the leaves...

 

151115NepenthesBloodyMary.jpg

 

The other one has a leave that is mostly red. They all look heathy enough apart from this.

 

I wasn't sure if this was a good thing or not. In a private conversation with Welshy, he suggested that maybe they are getting too much light, and that I should remove them from the light hood (hope I quoted you right there Tony!). He wasn't sure, and suggested I ask here, so here I am!

 

Anyone any comments? Is this a good sign or a bad one? If I should move them out, how do I get the bright red pitchers that I see in other people's pictures? For example, see this one I picked prety much at random from an image search for the plant...

333_0.jpg

How do they get such bright red pitchers without bright light?

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

Edited by Yossu
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In a private conversation with Welshy, he suggested that maybe they are getting too much light, and that I should remove them from the light hood (hope I quoted you right there Tony!). He wasn't sure, and suggested I ask here, so here I am!

 

As i said to you in that conversation, i don't grow under lights so it's best to ask the people who do and have more experience with such matters. But it looks to me like it's getting too much light, Bloody Mary leaves are more often than not a very bright green.

Edited by Welshy
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As i said to you in that conversation, i don't grow under lights so it's best to ask the people who do and have more experience with such matters. But it looks to me like it's getting too much light, Bloody Mary leaves are more often than not a very bright green.

Thanks, that's a more accurate version of what you said!

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It has happened to me that old leaves get red when I first take the plants in in my tank but I've been told that happens while the plant is getting used to the new light. The new leaves are mostly green and waxy, and that means they adapted to the new light levels, they can also grow a bit smaller due to the reduced need for light. 

 

So I'd be worried only if even the new leaves are getting  very red.

Edited by JMHoff
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All new leaves on some of my plants under 96W of T5 have some degree of redness, from a light blush to almost no green whatsoever. Growing in such a small space, I look to limit leaf size while not compromising overall vigour, pitcher size and quality.

Edited by Amori
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I think your plant looks very happy, I grow under lights and wouldn't be worried at all, more light for me seems to be redder smaller leaves and larger pitchers . The older leaves on yours seem to be getting tanned the most and I would expect that if they were formed in less light , the new growth looks good to me

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Thanks to everyone for the replies! That's a great relief to hear.

 

I'll keep an eye on the new growth and see how it looks, but as both plants look healthy, I don't think there's anything to worry about.

 

Thanks again.

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I grow a few Neps under lights in a tank. I grow them quite well when I remember to water them. I have two 36 inch tubes on the tanks with reflectors. 

I gave up having the two tubes on a few years ago because some of the plants leaves were getting a bit scorched. I would just say try less light. Suck it and see.

Your Bloody Mary seems fairly healthy though, the duff leaves do look like the older leaves, which won't last forever.

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Sorry, I forgot to mention that I use one tube these days.

What wattage is it? Also, is this a 36" tube? If so, one plant won't be getting the full amount of light. Just trying to estimate how it compares to what I have here.

 

Thanks for the reply

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I seem to remember the tubes are something like 36 watts. I can't remember exactly without checking but all the 36 inch tubes have the same wattage. That goes for whatever you buy in the aquarium shop. The longer the tube that you use, the more wattage.

I think you may be worrying too much.

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I seem to remember the tubes are something like 36 watts. I can't remember exactly without checking but all the 36 inch tubes have the same wattage. That goes for whatever you buy in the aquarium shop. The longer the tube that you use, the more wattage.

OK, thanks. I guess I'll stick with what I've got then.
 

I think you may be worrying too much.

Could well be, but I'm still very new at this, and want to give my plants the best chance I can.
 
Apart from anything else, I only have one of each of most of them, and can't afford to replace any that I kill!

 

I don't know if this has made any difference, but the mix that the Neps are in looks a bit close and peaty. If it is a mix from Matthew Soper, then I will just have to shut up. Can't argue with a multiple Chelsea Gold Medal winner can you ?

Guess not! It is from him. All of my plants are in his stuff so far, with the except of one or two I used live sphagnum moss for. I have bought myself a 200l bale of Clover peat, and have yet to decide what to use with it, but so far, I'm not to blame for any mixes!

 

Thanks for the reply.

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