What type of pot is best for Nepenthes?

[cpkid]

I have a Nepenthes truncata in a deep, 4" pot, and since the leaves are now matching the surface area of the pot, I was going to repot it this spring and I was wondering what kind of pot should I get? I've heard that baskets are good for Nepenthes, and since I am an orchid grower I'm somewhat familiar with those, is that what I should get?

[hcarlton]

Nepenthes do fine in plastic pots, drained ceramic (undrained if you watch the watering), and if you want to go for the hanging look, baskets and hanging pots as well. Also, they tend to have small root systems compared to plant size, so don't stress on repotting too soon. I have a lowland truncata in a 2 inch pot that is well over 6 inches across, with nearly 4 inch pitchers.

[sykosarah]

What is more important is what you shouldn't put them in: terra cotta and unglazed clay pots are a no no in general for most carnivorous plants. You can also consider using a taller pot, unlike most CPs, nepenthes are not fond of "wet feet", so a taller pot will help prevent that.

[adelea]

Not fond of wet feet, root size and pot depth all vary from species to species and soil type, for example an open airy soil, like say one high in perlite or basalt will mean more and larger roots, as for wet feet, in general neps like moist not wet, however there are exceptions, ampullaria and mirabilis enjoy growing in water trays year round (for me), but albomarginata, veitchii and truncata hate water trays and preffer their watering to be a daily misting.
An orchid basket is fine if your watering enough, I find that in my greenhouse they are fine due to daily misting, but on tree's in the back yard where they are watered by rain/occasional waterig in the dry they dry up to quick, so I use white, grey and green plastic (as they are cooler and have a lower evaporation).
Truncata will get huge leaves, so don't focus on surface area to much or you will need a bath tub for a pot in a few years, my truncata X maxima for example has already got a daimeter in excess of 1m, and my truncata is only a few years old and already 12-13inch wide, but only 4-5inch tall.
I find a 1foot (12inch) wide pot by 1foot (really 9-12inch) depth works well for most neps right until they are about 1m tall, my truncata is happy in a soil of 2spag:1Basalt, but if you don't have basalt then using pumice or perlite instead is fine, but for perlite use a ration of 1:1, this is providing your water either daily or every 2 days.
If your plants are not watered daily or you go away for periods I would suggest a higher spag ratio or using a soil like 1spag:1 fine orchid bark or african violet mix, this retains alot of water but does not seem to get to wet (in my experience).
The down side to baskets is that for me the husk lining rots within a year, somtimes less, so I only use them on a couple neps that like little water, plastic and terracotta/glazed pots are fine providing you have soft water, I use alot of terracotta on sarra's and neps, but my water comes from a bore that comes from a creek inhabited by D.Adelae, a very picky plant when it comes to water pollution.
If you don't have soft water (e.g. if your water has Cl or Cu or some other metal) then terracotta will allow the metals/salts to build up and eventually create a toxic level, plastic however hold less minerals.

So, pick a pot that suits your watering/humidity, then once you have the pot you want choose a soil that will suit both your plant and the pot, I find my truncata hated Peatmoss in its soil and slowed growth, whereas a spag mix increased growth dramatically, but it is still a slow growing species.

[sykosarah]

Soft water not from a water softener, since that contains salt

[Dave Evans]

non English speakers might not understand the difference, but English speakers should know the difference between soft water and softened water...

[adelea]

Good point, to be clearer, when I say soft water I mean, rain water or demineralised water, water that has no or very little salts or minerals, as opposed to a "hard" water like say town water that has Cl added or water that has been softened with a chemical reaction (which leaves salts)