Question
QUESTION: Sirs,
I have a S. rubra I repotted and divided this spring. I placed both plants into an undrained pot with shapghnum mosss to grow in.  Both were doing well, they even tried to produce flowers.  However I clipped those to help the plant recover after dividing.   All was well until today I noticed that the largest half had a sickly looking growth point that was formerly heathy.  The rhizome there was mushy and brown.  In a panick, I cut the brown portion back until I had firm white rhizome.  What steps should I take to help cure my plant???

My current idea is to repot both in separate pots with drains in the bottom and treat them with an antifungal like tebuconazole(I saw it on your video).  Also, do you think this could be due to the pot causing too much standing water?  I had a hole cut two inches from the top of the soil as a drain.  Another odd event, the plants were attacked by a bird while I was at work because the thought the pitchers would be a good nest.

Thank you so much in advance for helping save my plant!!!!!

Chris

ANSWER: Hi Chris,

Sounds like you're already learning a lesson the hard way about undrained pots; don't use them.  You always want to use a regular pot of some kind with holes and a water tray.  Pots without drainage always create bacterial build-up.

Sarracenia rubra forms are often more prone to fungal infections due to their tight growth.  What you've done is great in cutting away the dead material.  Spraying with a fungicide such as the tebuconazole which is in the Bayer 3 in 1, or saturating the rhizome with a sulfur fungicide is a good preventative.

Birds can be a real pain, and I've had to use bird netting at times.  The reflective tape they sell to scare birds can be helpful too, but you need to move it around.

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.cobraplant.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The S. Rubra are now repotted in their own pots.  However all I could find was sphagnum pear moss. Only perlite was miracle grow brand.  So they're potted in pure peat right now. If they're going to survive this, how long do you think it will be before I see any growth?  I know both have to be under tremendous stress. I noticed the tips of one starting to dry a bit despite plenty of water. Should I place them out of full sun while they recover some?  It's getting in the upper 80s here in TN.
Thanks,
Chris

Answer
There is no set amount of time. It all depends on the severity of the damage.  This is when you simply need to be patient.  Give your plant a month.  If you don't see new growth after that, you can take a peek at the rhizome.  If it turned brown and the growing tip is brown and soft, you lost the plant.  

There's no advantage to keeping the plant in shade during the recovery process.  In fact, sunlight will help the recovery process by providing the plant energy via photosynthesis.  Ultraviolet light also kills fungal spores.  Just make sure the soil is always moist.

Good growing!
Jacob Farin