North American pitcher plant
The genus Sarracenia
The largest carnivorous pitcher plants in the world, grown from seed and rhizome divisions at our nursery in Vossem and Renkum. We have specialized in this unique genus for over 15 years.
Introduction & Catching mechanism
Sarracenia is the genus with the largest traps of all carnivorous plants, and also the first pitcher plant cultivated in Europe, in the 17th century. Its common names include trumpet pitcher plant or North American pitcher plant. The Latin name refers to the French botanist Michel Sarrazin. All Sarracenia species operate on the same principle: fragrances and bright colors attract insects, slippery hairs along the rim cause them to fall, and downward-pointing hairs inside the pitcher make escape almost impossible. The prey is then digested by the plant's own digestive fluids.
Appearance: height per variety
Roughly divisible by height. Interspecies crosses also make every intermediate form possible.
Colors range from green, pink, and red to orange, white, and almost black. Flowers are yellow, green, red, orange, pink, or white. The nectar glands all over the cup smell wonderful in summer.
Natural habitat
Sarracenia grows in the US and Canada in open, acidic, wet, and nutrient-poor soils: clearings in pine forests, swamps, bogs, and along springs. The soil is extremely poor in nitrogen and phosphorus, hence the need for insects as a food source. The plants often stand in scorching sun but can also tolerate shade. Temperatures reach up to 30 °C in summer; in winter, it can freeze from -4 °C (southern species like S. leucophylla) to -25 °C (northern species like S. purpurea). Every winter, the plants go dormant; in spring, they first flower, and then new pitchers appear.
Variation & taxonomy
Various species grow intertwined in nature and crossbreed effortlessly. The variation in colour and shape is enormous. This made it difficult for botanists to draw clear species boundaries; the classification still changes regularly. All ten species: S. flava, leucophylla, purpurea, rubra, alata, minor, oreophila, psittacina, rosea and their hybrids, are represented in our assortment, from compact to over one meter tall.
Nature Conservation
It is estimated that only 2.5% of the original Sarracenia habitat remains intact, and the current figure is likely even lower. Drainage of wetlands, suppression of natural wildfires, and agriculture have caused the disappearance of enormous numbers of plants. S. oreophila is on the verge of extinction. Therefore, only buy from certified nurseries that grow their own plants. All our plants are produced at our own nursery, never taken from the wild.