Greetings, caretaker. We are the Nepenthes, the Tropical Pitcher Plants. To truly thrive and produce our magnificent, intricate traps far from our native cloud forests and highland jungles, we require a very specific home—a terrarium. From our perspective, this is not a glass box but a recreation of our world. Here is what we need from you.
Our roots are delicate and despise richness. We are not like those plants that crave fertile, heavy soil. In fact, such conditions will swiftly poison and rot us. We require a substrate that is airy, devoid of nutrients, and perfectly draining. A mix of long-fiber sphagnum moss, perlite, and orchid bark chips is ideal. It should feel light and fluffy, holding moisture without ever becoming soggy or compacted. This allows our roots to breathe and access water without drowning, mimicking the nutrient-poor peat and moss of our natural treetop homes.
Our leaves, and most importantly, our developing pitchers, are utterly dependent on consistently high humidity. We are children of the mist. The air in our terrarium must be maintained at 70% humidity or higher at all times. A dry environment causes our tender pitcher tips to wither and die before they can form, leaving us unable to feed. A glass enclosure with a lid, combined with a shallow tray of water or a small humidifier, helps create this essential, steamy microclimate. Good air circulation from a small, gentle fan is also welcome, as it prevents stagnant, fungal-laden air.
We adore bright, dappled light—the kind that filters through a dense jungle canopy. Direct, harsh sunlight will scorch our leaves, bleaching them and stunting our growth. Position our terrarium to receive strong, but indirect light for most of the day, perhaps supplemented by a dedicated full-spectrum grow light placed a safe distance above the glass. As for temperature, we prefer stability. A comfortable range of 70-85°F (21-29°C) during the day, with a slight dip at night, is perfect. Avoid placing us near radiators or cold drafts, as extreme temperature fluctuations cause us great stress.
We are incredibly sensitive to minerals and chemicals. Tap water is toxic to us, its dissolved salts quickly building up and burning our roots. You must provide us only with pure water: rainwater, distilled water, or reverse osmosis water. Water our substrate from above until it is evenly moist, never letting us sit in a deep pool of water. Regarding food, if our terrarium is sealed, we may catch our own gnats or springtails. If not, you may occasionally drop a small, dead insect no larger than a third of the size of one of our pitchers into an existing trap. Never fertilize our soil; we are designed to get all our sustenance from the prey in our pitchers.
