Today I decided to focus exclusively on potting up gemmae of my Pygmy Sundews (Drosera paleacea) in small cups where they will remain indefinitely. Please refer to the third through sixth image on yesterday’s blog post to see exactly what I’m talking about.
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STEP 1 – Gather together a small glass jar, a 3 oz white bathroom cup, a 5.5 oz clear salsa cup, 4″ (10cm) of acrylic yarn, and a large needle. |
| STEP 2 – Thread the needle and then carefully push it into the bottom of the bathroom cup. Move the needle back and forth a few times to insure the hole is slightly larger than the needle, then push it through. |
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STEP 3 – Remove the needle, leaving the yarn in place through the hole in the bottom of the cup. Now the bathroom cup should have the acrylic yarn both inside and outside through the hole in the bottom. |
| STEP 4 – Place the cup into the small glass jar and insure there’s at least an inch (2.5cm) of space between the bottom of the cup and the bottom of the jar. Make sure the bottom of the piece of yarn is positioned so that the end of it lays on the bottom of the glass jar and the top of the yarn is just visible at the top rim of the bathroom cup. |
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STEP 5 – I had some long-strand Sphagnum Moss, which is not ideal for Pygmy Sundews. However, I took a clump of it and “shaved” thin slices off of it with scissors in order to get mostly/fairly short pieces of the moss. I did this until I had enough to fill the bathroom cup. The preferred substrate is 2/3 milled peat or sphagnum and 1/3 perlite or sand. |
| STEP 6 – After filling the cup half-way, fold the piece of yarn over, then fill the bathroom cup the rest of the way with the freshly cut Sphagnum. Gently press down, not too firmly, but enough so the Sphagnum isn’t too “fluffy” in the cup. Good contact with the yarn has to be made to insure it serves its purpose, detailed in STEP 8 below. |
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STEP 7 – Since the gemmae are extremely small, to insure they don’t get lost down in the crevices of moss, carefully press down a flattened center, and using some of the finest clippings of Sphagnum to give it a relatively stable foundation for the growing Pygmy Sundew. |
| STEP 8 – The yarn serves as a pathway for water to automatically be drawn up into the cup, keeping the Sphagnum constantly moist, but not soggy. The yarn needs to be acrylic because it does not rot. Cotton and other natural fibers, while sometimes used, will eventually rot and need to be replaced. Acrylic, on the other hand, can last for well over a year. As long as there is always distilled water in the glass jar, the Pygmy Sundew will never be in need of water. |
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STEP 9 – The hardest part! I had to very carefully lift a sprouted gemmae from the damp paper towel with a toothpick, taking great care not to injure the tiny root. Then gently rest it on the surface of the “foundation” in the center of the pot. You can also take freshly acquired gemmae and rest them in the center in the same fashion if you’re not sprouting them on paper towel like I do. |
| STEP 10 – Then invert the salsa cup and place it over the bathroom cup. It makes a perfect “tent” over the Pygmy Sundew to keep everything very humid while it begins growing into the Sphagnum. Once it appears to be growing well, you can remove the cover. The Pygmy Sundew is very small, so it should be fine remaining in this setup from now on. |
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This process can be used for all manner of plants that need a little TLC and a steady water supply. I’ve used it with Venus Flytraps (Dionaea muscipula), Cape Sundews (Drosera capensis) and Spoonleaf Sundews (Drosera spatulata) with wonderful results. I’ve also used regular soil and grown a variety of other common (and not so common) plants, especially for cuttings that can be a little difficult to root. The salsa cup over them is a great way to insure high humidity to help them while they are rooting.
