Hairy Pitcher Plant
Nepenthes hirsuta
115 maonero
Taxonomy
| Mhuri: | Nepenthaceae |
|---|---|
| Genus: | Nepenthes |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
Overview
Nepenthes hirsuta, the hairy pitcher plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is covered in thick brown hairs, even on its flower stalks, and produces mostly green pitchers at elevations of about 200 to 1,100 m.
Nepenthes hirsuta is a climber 1 to 4 m tall, with nearly stalkless leaves. Lower pitchers are egg-shaped to ellipsoid, narrowing to a short cylindrical upper part, 11 to 18 cm (4 to 7 in) long. Upper pitchers are produced much less often; they are cylindrical and 10 to 15 cm long. Pitchers are mostly green throughout, some with red blotches on the inner surface.
The whole plant carries a conspicuous dark, shaggy covering of hairs, which varies from long to short and from dense to sparse but is always present, though the hairs are brittle and rub off easily. Because of its pitcher shape and hairiness it can be mistaken for members of the N. maxima group, but it differs in its almost stalkless leaves and in having no appendage under the lid.
It is most closely related to N. hispida and N. macrovulgaris, and possibly to N. philippinensis of Palawan. Taxonomist Jan Schlauer treats N. hispida as a synonym of N. hirsuta. Natural hybrids with N. albomarginata and N. ampullaria have been recorded.
Geographic Information
Native Region: Borneo (endemic): Sarawak, Brunei, Sabah and Kalimantan
Climate Zones: Tropical, about 200-1,100 m (lowland to submontane)
Nepenthes hirsuta grows in a wide range of habitats, including kerangas (heath) forest, mossy banks in lower montane forest, open areas and disturbed vegetation on lower ridges, mostly on sandstone. Wikipedia gives its elevation range as 200 to 1,100 m; Cheek and Jebb describe it in submontane forest, sometimes on ridge-tops, at 500 to 1,100 m. It is widespread and common in northern Borneo.
Hunhu Hwenyama
Kukura Saizi: Climber 1-4 m; lower pitchers 11-18 cm (4-7 in)
Chiyero chekukura: Moderate
Trap Type: Pitfall Trap
The pitchers are pitfall traps. Unlike many related species, the underside of the lid has no appendage.
Care Guide
Chiedza Zvinodiwa
Bright, diffuse light is excellent, and artificial lighting can be adequate if it is bright enough.
Bright light year round; no seasonal rest zuva nezuva
Zvinodiwa Mvura
Type: Purified water (distilled, reverse osmosis or rain) is safest
Nzira: Water from above and let the excess drain. Do not keep the pot standing in a tray of water: plants sitting in trays often have dwarfed root systems.
Frequency: Often enough to keep the mix evenly moist
Humidity: Very high: at least 60%, ideally near 90%
Ivhu
A 50:50 mix of long-fiber sphagnum moss and perlite is a good general starting point. After about a year, knock the plant out of its pot and look at the roots; if they are not exploring the mix, try a different one.
pH: Acidic (sphagnum based)
Tembiricha
Zhizha: Between Rice's lowland and highland ranges
Chando: Same as summer; tropical, grows all year
Kudyisa
Frequency: Optional; at most once or twice a month into the pitchers
Plants that catch insects need no feeding. Growers who want to fertilize can pour a small amount of orchid or epiphyte fertilizer into the pitchers once or twice a month, starting small and watching the effect. Fertilizing is optional.
Kuparadzira
Nzira: Stem cuttings: cut green stems into segments with about two leaves each, trim each leaf to about a third of its size, set the lower half in the mix and keep the cutting at very high humidity. Roots usually form within about a month. Seed needs a male and a female plant flowering at the same time; it is short-lived and should be sown at once.
Dambudziko: Moderate
Beginner Mazano
Keep it warm, humid and brightly lit, water from above and let it drain.
Troubleshooting
Leaf edges burning and tendrils failing to form pitchers: humidity too low. A small plant with a weak root system: the pot has been standing in water.
Kukura Mazano
Humidity makes the pitchers Troubleshooting
If leaf edges burn and tendrils stop forming pitchers, raise the humidity.
Between lowland and highland Advanced
It grows wild from about 200 to 1,100 m, so it sits between Rice's lowland and highland temperature ranges.
Do not rub the hairs General
The hairs that give it its name are brittle and come off with handling.
Zvinofadza Chokwadi
Hirsuta is Latin for hairy or bristly.
Its hairs extend even onto the inflorescence.
Barry Rice describes it as a green, not particularly showy species.
N. leptochila, once thought to be a hairless plant, is a weakly hairy form of this species.
The IUCN Red List assessed it as Least Concern in 2018 (Clarke, assessment T39665A143960697).
History
Joseph Dalton Hooker described Nepenthes hirsuta in 1873 in de Candolle's Prodromus, from a specimen collected by Hugh Low on the Lawas River in Borneo. Macfarlane described var. glabrata in 1908, and Danser's N. leptochila is now included in the species. The related N. hispida, described by Beck in 1895, was long treated as part of N. hirsuta until Jebb and Cheek restored it in 1997; some authors still merge the two.
Zvimwe
- Nepenthes hirsuta, Wikipedia
- Nepenthes hirsuta, Caryophyllales Network: Nepenthaceae (after Cheek & Jebb 2001, Flora Malesiana I, 15)
- Nepenthes: species of Borneo, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ (Barry Rice)
- Nepenthes: basic cultivation, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ (Barry Rice)
- Nepenthes: advanced cultivation, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ (Barry Rice)
- Thumbnail guidelines on growing a tropical pitcher plant, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ (Barry Rice)
Zvimwe zvinobvunzwa kakawanda
Inowanikwa Kutenga
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