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Nepenthes argentii |
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Description Nepenthes argentii is a distinctive and extremely rare species found only on one small part of the picturesque Mt. Guiting-Guiting on Sibuyan Island in the Rhomblon Province of the Philippines. This truly miniature species is probably the smallest in the genus, with pitchers barely larger than a thumbnail. The tendrils however can be very long, sometimes over 30cm (12") in length, they usually burrow down into the moss and then emerge some distance away from the plant where the lower pitchers will form, often still almost completely concealed by moss. Mt. Guiting-Guiting is regularly lashed by typhoons and the plants grow on exposed rocky ledges, usually on otherwise sheer sandstone cliffs. It may be necessary for the plants to protect their pitchers from the strong winds by burrowing in moss. |
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Occasionally a plant will be seen clinging to a tiny moss outcrop on a cliff face with the tendrils reaching down to another similar outcrop lower down. It seems that pitchers will only form when in a sheltered environment and we have never observed lower pitchers growing in exposed places in the wild. All the Nepenthes argentii observed so far seem to be of similar form and colouration. The pitcher body is heavily red flecked on a creamy-white background. The peristome is very dark purple, almost black, and has the curious feature in that it extends up under the lid, giving the appearance of a pair of wings just beneath the lid. One of the photographs in this gallery shows this feature. The tendrils and pitchers of this species are completely covered with a fine coating of reddish-brown hairs. |
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Cultivation Nepenthes argentii is so far proving to be a far easier grower than we had expected. We grow this species in our highland nursery in a mixture of 50% coco-peat and 50% coco-chips (2s size). Light levels are high and temperatures range between a maximum of 25 deg. C daytime down to a minimum of 12 deg. C at night. This is very similar to the conditions experienced in the natural habitat. However, in the wild the plant experiences strong winds which may have an effect on the development of the mature plant. Since all our plants are quite young, it is too soon to be sure about the factor of air movement. There is some air movement through our nurseries, and as yet we don't have any information as to whether this species can be grown successfully in terrarium conditions where the air is nearly stagnant. |
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So far we
have had little feedback from the few customers we have supplied so
far except that it is proving to be a vigorous species. Since coco-peat
and coco-chips may not be available to all growers, we would suggest
that a typical well drained highland Nepenthes mix may be used. It may
be a good idea to use a mix containing a high proportion of sphagnum
moss as this species grows in moss outcrops in it's natural habitat.
Whilst this moss is certainly not sphagnum, being far more course and
wiry, it may well have similar drainage and anti-fungal properties.
We would welcome any information from growers which we could add to future editions of this page.
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