The genus Nepenthes (Monkey Cup or Tropical Pitcher plant) is one of the most fascinating of all carnivorous plants. Currently almost 100 species are accepted scientifically, most of them from Borneo, Sumatra and the Malaysian region. The climbing vines of Nepenthes produce a modified form of leaf called a "pitcher" hence the common name "Tropical Pitcher plant". The size of the pitcher varies and some species are large enough to hold up to two litres of water! The name “Monkey Cup” arises from the fact that monkeys have been seen to drink water from them in the rainforests. The pitchers are not simply water reservoirs for the plant in times of drought, as the first European observers assumed. They are actually highly complex passive insect traps, which secrete and absorb a mild to very acidic digestive fluid that contains many as yet undetermined compounds. Insects are attracted to the traps because of nectar secretions and coloration. The slippery rim and inner walls of the pitcher encourage insects to fall into the digestive fluid at the bottom of the trap. Nutrients are absorbed from this "soup." The variation in pitcher colour and shape is what most interests exotic plant enthusiasts and the horticultural trade. I have this awesome plant hanging on my porch :)

Found in the jungle as we climbed Mount Kinabalu.

Mount Tozer, Queensland

Wellington Co and Huron Co, ON mother plants. These are 11 years old

Sarracenia purpurea; Cranesville Swamp Nature Preserve, Garrett Co., MD

transylvania Co, NC. My mother plants-these are outstanding genetics! This has to be my favorite species-they've grown significantly in the past 3 months and perhaps doubled in sized. What's nice is that some of these clones seem to be clump forming, which means they'll make some excellent specimens. And yes, I have a lot of seedlings in the works-these plants were meant to be distributed and not just grown in my collection :)

There were a number of pitcher plants close to the trail; this one was large, but some were far smaller.

Stone Co, MS. An all red clone selected by Tom Cahill and described in 2006. Very rare in cultivation. It was a seed grown plant selected from many individuals that displayed consistent strong red colors and extreme vigor. You can't tell from the picture, but the pitchers are almost a meter tall, and they can probably get bigger! Under my conditions, the color will become more intense as the fall approaches.

Original description of the cultivar can be found here (goto the bottom of the page): www.carnivorousplants.org/cpn/Species/v36n2p53_56.html

Picther plants / carnivore stuff.

Wild flowers/plants seen in my local area.

Sarracenia can be evergreen or herbaceous, rhizomatous perennials with rosettes of phyllodes mostly modified into insect-catching tubular pitchers with hooded lids, and solitary, nodding cup-shaped flowers in spring

The elusive S. oreophila. These should be dormant right now, but a few are still shooting out a pitcher here and there.

Some years, they are boring plants, but this year, they've been nothing but a spectacular show of colors. This clone which originally came from UC Berkeley is just amazing-it produced a few fall pitchers, and it's developing a nice red coloration in the throat. The shapely pitchers make handsome specimens.

One of the best looking clones in the collection. These plants remind me of S. oreophila and even cephalotus-they have many different phenotypes or physical appearances depending on their environment. Check out the same exact clone grown by Robert Co: thepitcherplantproject.com/blog/2011/09/19/hurricane-cree...

If you compare pictures side by side, notice how the green veination in the lid in Robert's plant is less pronounced. My plant's traps are a bit fatter, while Robert's plant is skinnier and perhaps a bit more elegant. I have a hard time keeping these things on a diet-they hog down everything that moves in the area!

Free download under CC Attribution (CC BY 4.0). Please credit the artist and rawpixel.com.

Hand drawn flower illustrations by the "Audubon of Botany", Mary Vaux Walcott (1860–1940). Mary was a female American artist and naturalist known for her almost a thousand watercolors of North American wildflowers. She started experimenting with painting flowers at the age of eight. During her family summer trips to the Rocky Mountains of Canada, she developed her interest in botany and painting. Mary Vaux Walcott and her brother also studied mineralogy. Her success in painting a rare blooming mountain arnica encouraged her to concentrate on botanical illustrations. Mary Vaux Walcott also became an active mountain climber and photographer because she spent many years exploring the difficult terrain in the Canadian Rockies. As a remarkable botanist artist and an unconventional woman, she was elected as the president of the Society of Woman Geographers in 1933. We have digitally enhanced hundreds of her wildflower watercolor paintings into high resolution printable quality. They are free to download and use under the creative commons license.

Higher resolutions with no attribution required can be downloaded: https://www.rawpixel.com/board/1286391/flower-illustrations-mary-vaux-walcott-free-cc0-public-domain-paintings?sort=curated&mode=shop&page=1

Huron and Wellington Co, ON Very photogenic plants

Pitcher plant at Longwood Gardens.

The Gulf Sweet Pitcherplant can be found growing as a floating emergent in small streams in the Florida panhandle. At this particular site, the plants grow in a small spring run.

I purchased this plant on a lark at a local nursery a couple years ago. Against all odds and below freezing winters, it's come back again to feed on the unsuspecting insects in our garden.

It's still forming its "pitchers" -- the cups filled with a sweet liquid that attracts insects, then dissolves and digests them using a chemical akin to our stomach acid. Horrible.

f-1 outcross between two different heterophylla clones.

10 image focus stack

Purple Pitcherplant

I was pleased to see this clump of Pitcher Plant flowers in the Green Swamp.

Species: Purple Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea)

Location: The Green Swamp near Wilmington, North Carolina

pitcher plant

A year old and still thriving. This plant, one of about 30 out back, traps a lot of the insects that hang around the fruit trees and vegie garden.

Plants have really filled up the tubs now that summer is almost over.

This was taken at the Chelsea flower show 2007.

Nepenthes maxima 'wavy leaf' form

That pea sized bud is now a large walnut sized flower - but looking back at others we've had, this is less 'frilly' - and no sign yet of the inner structure. Endlessly fascinating - even though we thought we had a direct replacement for our first sarracenia, they are different.

Brunswick County, NC. Can't tell by the picture, but this particular clone has a huge lid relative to the size of the pitcher mouth. It's still a seedling, so in time it'll show it's true colors.

genetically diverse population from Ware County, GA. Plants can get up to a meter+ tall under optimal conditions, and grow especially large during Indian summers.

Purple Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea), one of several species of Sarracenia found in the Green Swamp near Wilmington, North Carolina.

Sarracenia purpurea

Terrarium with a small Carnivorous Pitcher Plant inside.

Carnivorous Plants (Sarraceniaceae family) / May, Habersham Co., Georgia, USA / Copyright ©2018 William Tanneberger - All Rights Reserved.

Parrot Pitcherplant (Sarracenia psittacina)

Rural Habersham Co., GA (Carnivorous Plant Collection)

Photographed during the 14th annual Bedford garden tour on July 10. Bedford Township is in southeast Michigan near Toledo, Ohio.

The original clone-one of the most outstanding naturally occurring hybrids between S. flava rugelii and S. leucophylla. Thanks to Bob Hanrahan, who had this growing on his property in Alabama, we are fortunate to have this plant in cultivation.

Pitcher plants @ Cloud Forest

We were very excited to spot these marsh plants. Pitcher plants are 'carnivores' that trap insects in their 'pitcher' and utilize the decayed body for nutrients. These plants were quite large, and very reddish in color.