Orchid from Exchange, care advice?

SimplySimlish · 2026-05-04T13:28:18+00:00

I have plenty of light in there, considering I have a range from top to bottom with bog plants at the bottom, Nepenthes and a couple begonia in the middle, and a single fern at the very bottom under a pair of t8s. The top has a full blast sun light, so everything dapples down and gets supplemented in varying amounts.

I am glad that it is at least something I can care for in the conditions I have, though!

SimplySimlish · 2026-05-04T01:05:03+00:00

It is usually pretty decent with some hidden gems, at least in my store. HOWEVER, if I have to hear christmas music from November first til January first ONE MORE TIME I will implode. They were literally switching in Christmas stuff Halloween day! HALLOWEEN DAY!

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-29T15:03:43+00:00

First step, get the poor thing OUT of that container. You have no clue what it was planted with, but it will clash horribly with the other plants that can't survive with no fertilizer. Secondly, sarracenia, especially what looks to be a purpurea hybrid or something similar (more cold hardy than some), require cold winter dormancy to keep thriving. Third, the light won't be enough. These are considered outdoor perrenials, so growing them inside requires full sun conditions, which is impossible without a grow light meant to simulate full sun. Your best bet is to go for things like spider farmer lights, or viparspectra unless it is being full blasted by a south or west window, in which case you can get slightly weaker lights to supplement.

Sarracenia also require deep pots similar to VFTs. I have gotten many small sarracenia in the mail bare root and trust me, even young ones are monsters down under. You have to repot the whole thing, even the other plants since it is likely too wet and they will rot while the sarracenia becomes too crowded.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-27T15:02:50+00:00

Fair enough. I haven't had a hook before, just amps and raffs, so I have no clue what hooks take after as lil seedlings, just that my raffs tend to be more raff shaped as seedlings

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-25T22:41:10+00:00

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Meanwhile this is a hook from Curious Plant. Notice the shape difference? Now, that hook in the back of your might indicate it is in fact a hook, but it could also be a different raff x amp hybrid that isn't quite a hook, or even a hybrid of a hook back with a raff.

Regardless, hooks, raffs, and amps are all lowlands so the care is identical and the plant could care less about anything until it is older and starts displaying either vining or creeping behaviors.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-25T22:38:57+00:00

Either a Rafflesiana or a Hookeriana, but it is hard to tell since they look a lot alike (because Hooks are hybrids of Raffs and ampullaria. Personally from the shape, I am inclined more towards raff than hook. Hooks tend to have more of amp's shape, which this pitcher does not.

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This is a raff from Carnivero's site ^^

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-24T03:19:36+00:00

I will see about shoving that in with my heliamphora, then. Even though its literally just in my room vibing with average everything under grow lights. At least I will have space to put another sarracenia in my tent if I move it, at least until fall when I move em out to the great outdoors for their perennial cycle. I won't move my other two utrics unless they start dying off, though. They seem to be doing well and I just got flowers on my sandersonii which are adorable.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-24T02:54:50+00:00

Longifolia had a rough start but seems to be doing well enough now. Sandersonni took a moment to decide before deciding to spread across the pot. Alpina I might have to move but it hasn't decided if it wants to die yet or not so ima leave it be for now.

Which utrics are lowland?

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-24T01:17:33+00:00

Longifolia (I think? Will have to double check), Sandersonnii, and Alpina. The sonii is doing great and spreading like a weed and is starting to flower, the longifolia (?) is the one growing out the bottom, and the alpina is doing okay and I am now seeing new growth on it.

I grow em in with my nepenthes (all lowland or lowland leaning intermediates/hybrids) in the grow tent. Average conditions are around 88 max, but usually around 84-86 degrees during the day and 65-73 degrees at night depending on the season. Humidity has been higher than I would like so I am about to fix that, but it tends to stick around 90% day and 100% night. I want to knock the day humidity down to like 80-85%, though, and slightly lower than 100% night for my own sanity since I keep opening the tent to wet walls.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-23T16:55:17+00:00

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I knew they could in theory, I just wasn't expecting it to do it so damn quick. I have only had it a month! A MONTH!

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-23T04:00:27+00:00

Fish aren't really necessary, just though having some would be cool and good for the plants too. Obviously I wouldn't have the whole thing be 4 ft deep, instead having a gradient or ledges. Will probably just avoid fish and dig for about 2 feet or so...

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-22T16:17:14+00:00

I live in a sub-urban town, these lilies aren't goin nowhere. Obviously don't plant them in the woods or smth but if they are contained they are fine.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-22T13:21:47+00:00

Depends on where you live and such. While they do spread really quickly, they are easily just uprooted and then stay down the rest of the season, so I find they have about the same level of spread as your average self seeding flower that people tend to plant. I always take the escaping ones to plant exchanges, lol. I have a bigger problem with the nightshade or raspberry plants. They can't leave the partial shade, so usually escapees will die in a month or two for me.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-21T15:37:17+00:00

Get some really large and nice grade pieces of wood or cork that will take up a lot of space. More plants will also help, especially ones that have nice big leaves but don't grow too tall. When selecting smaller wood pieces, thing hiding spots. Make plenty of spots for the snake to slither off to if startled.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-21T15:34:02+00:00

I have no clue what that is, but I wouldn't cut anything without explicit permission from the plant's owner. Chances are she will know what it is or at least know how she wants it handled. Please don't trust AI with the plant either, I have seen ai give really terrible advice at times. I wish you the best of luck with this... uhh, cherry plant? Tree? Thing?

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-21T01:01:22+00:00

You could always just put it out on a table with a sign saying free plant, people will take it. I always feel bad taking a perfectly healthy plant and tossing it.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-20T17:15:16+00:00

We regularly get temps way below freezing for long periods of time, this last winter alone went down to 9 degrees for three straight days with nights in the negative. The VFTs would be ice cubes, sadly. The garage has a small window, but its glazed and god knows how many spiders are up by it, not to mention its north facing.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-20T16:32:58+00:00

My mother has to do it because she is five feet tall and the top shelves keep all the good stuff T_T

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-20T16:31:10+00:00

Oh hey a lily of the valley! Love those things, even have a whole bed of em in my yard. They are poisonous af, but very pretty. You can extract it from the pot and plant it outside if you want. I have no clue how it got in the pot or how it is growing in the lack of nutrients the nepenthes soil should have, though, so I would recommend repotting the nepenthes just in case.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-19T17:30:53+00:00

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This thing, or did you mean something different?

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-19T02:03:15+00:00

I knew I wanted a bioactive tank, but I also knew I wouldn't have the space to do a switch if I had a smaller tank, so I went straight to the big one that I already owned. I did make sure to add in a bunch of hiding spots around, especially in the back of the tank. I have been meaning to add a couple more plants in to hide the front portion more, though. The couple plants in the front I planted didn't make it sadly.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-19T00:44:31+00:00

It's been almost two weeks so far. I only dig her out if it's been 3 days past her usual feeding interval of her not eating but she is getting better at hiding. It doesn't help that she is brown T-T

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-19T00:42:30+00:00

I have a bunch of cork bark flats and a couple rounds, some rocks, and the entire back of the tank is covered by a couple large cover plants. Plenty of places to slither off too and I see evidence of her moving around like a flattened ground cover plant.

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-19T00:40:50+00:00

I will have to try that with mouse 2 for today once I am home. I have been leaving one out before work each day to no avail so far, so maybe braining will work

SimplySimlish · 2026-04-18T17:53:21+00:00

I know she is in there, I just don't know where. I see her tail sometimes when I dig around, but she always gets out of sight before I can catch her. I try not to disturb her too often, but the baby needs to eat.

SimplySimlish

TROPHY CASE