Is pitcher plant poisonous?

The pitcher plant is the general name of all species of the genus pitcher plant, and its origin is mainly in the tropics of the Old World, and there is only one species in Guangdong, China. Although it is wildly distributed in Sanling Mountain, Leizhou and other places in Guangdong, it is rarely used. It was not until the 1990s that the fine varieties of pitcher plants introduced into China were mainly used in flower exhibitions. Let's take a look at whether pitcher plants are poisonous.

Is pitcher plant poisonous?

The pitcher plant itself is not poisonous, but the nectar secreted by the nectaries in the insect trap is slightly toxic and has an anesthetic effect, but if these nectaries want to harm the human body, at least 1000 milliliters must be extracted and drunk in one breath. So for family maintenance, pitcher plants are not toxic, as long as they are not eaten by mistake, they will not cause harm. However, if there are children at home, they may eat it by mistake, so you should pay special attention to it.

Do pitcher plants eat worms?

The structure of the pitcher plant pitcher bottle is relatively special, the inner wall of the bottle has a lot of wax, very smooth. There are about 1 million digestive glands on the inner wall, which can secrete a large amount of colorless, transparent, slightly scented acidic digestive juice after the pitcher plant catches worms, which contains amines and alkaloids that can paralyze and poison insects. At the same time, there are many nectaries on the inside and edge of the bottle cap, which can secrete fragrant and sweet honey to tempt insects. When the bottle opens the lid of the honeypot, it will attract many gluttonous insects. As soon as the bug falls into the bottle, the cap will close automatically, and the insect will soon be poisoned and killed. Soon, all the limbs were digested into hogwash and the nutrients were absorbed.

How to raise pitcher plants?

1. Soil: loose, fertile and breathable rotten leaf soil or peat soil is better for pitcher plant culture soil, and the mixed substrate of peat soil, water moss, charcoal and fir sawdust is often used in pot cultivation.

2. Watering: the pitcher plant is sensitive to water and can only grow and develop normally under the condition of high humidity. During the growing period, it needs to spray water frequently, 4 or 5 times a day. If the temperature changes greatly and is too dry, it will affect the formation of leaf cages.

3. Sunlight: the pitcher plant is an epiphytic plant, which often grows under the big tree forest or on the north side of the rock. The natural condition is semi-overcast. Under the strong light in summer, it must be shaded, otherwise the leaves are easy to burn and directly affect the development of the leaf cage.

4. Temperature: the optimum temperature for the growth of pitcher plant is 2530 ℃, 2130 ℃ from March to September, and 1824 ℃ from September to March of the following year. The winter temperature was not lower than 16 ℃, the plants below 15 ℃ stopped growing, and the leaf edges suffered frost damage when the temperature was below 10 ℃.

5. Fertilization: pitcher plants do not have strict requirements for fertilizer, and do not need special fertilization, because pitcher plants can usually feed on insects to transform nutrients, and there is no need to apply fertilizer if pitcher plants are eaten by insects.

6. Insect pests: pitcher plants are often harmed by leaf spot disease and shell insects. Leaf spot disease is sprayed with 1000 times of 50% Dysen zinc wettable powder, and shell insects are sprayed with 2000 times of 40% dimethoate EC.

7. Pruning: under suitable conditions, each cage can survive for several months, and when it has withered, it can be cut off to make the whole plant look more beautiful, but this is purely for the sake of beauty and has nothing to do with the health of the plant.