Question
in one of my pitchers the cricket grew mold.  is that normal? will it make the plant sick?

Answer
Hello Matt,

This can occur if the prey item is large enough to protrude above the preservative/digestive fluid level in the pitcher. In most cases this is not harmful unless the plant begins to become infected by the mold. Usually the pitcher will develop a brown spot in the area the prey item is rotting and molding in and the pitcher will die back after a couple of months. If this worries you, just tip the pitcher sideways every day so that the insect is submerged briefly in the preservative fluid. That fluid is an antifungal as well as an antibacterial called benzoic acid. It will kill off the mold and keep the prey item from rotting too much. The pitcher might still brown in that area if the insect is very large in comparison with the pitcher size. It will not overtly harm your plant in the long run... it is natural for some overly large insects to be trapped on occasion. Since we like our plants to keep their pitchers, it does distress us when this happens, but it is natural and not harmful.

Christopher