The best way to grow Drosera leaf cuttings.

[richardhole]

Hello

Is there any advantage of taking Drosera leaf cuttings by cutting the leaf where it intersects the crown compared to cutting the leaf 2 or 3 millimeters away from where it joins the crown? A problem with cutting where the leaf intersects the crown is that it may damage the plant or other leaves. It also may be more difficult to cut.

Also I read in Adrian Slack’s book that it is best to lay the leaves on finely broken sphagnum moss and to just cover the leaves with a thin layer of sphagnum moss. However, another grower suggested to just lay the leaves on peat moss and not cover them at all. An advantage with covering the leaves is that it would help to press them flat on the surface of the growing medium. Some curly leaves may not sit flat and could be separated from the surface if they are not covered.

Some people also suggest to cut the longer leaves into several pieces. Is this an advantage apart from that it could enable the leaf segments to remain in better contact with the growing medium compared to a longer leaf?

The plants I plan to grow are Drosera capensis, D. spatulata, D. adelae, D. venusta, D. indica and D. aliciae

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

[Joseph Clemens]

The best way to grow Drosera leaf cuttings is to move them to conditions favorable to the parent plants as soon as plantlets form and begin growing roots.

My favorite way to initiate plantlets on severed Drosera leaves is to float them in water. It has always worked quite well, and even with many otherwise difficult species, also responding well. Of those in your list, the only plant that proved difficult with any leaf cutting method was Drosera indica.

When plantlets form on the severed leaves and begin growing roots, I use forceps to carefully tear them away from the "mother" leaf, then plant them in regular medium as if they were seedlings. This way the "mother" leaves can continue to produce more plantlets before they are exhausted.

[sundewman]

agreed.
and btw. D. indica will not work for leaf cuttings.

All the other varieties you listed are very easy to grow as Joseph described.

But if you plan to grow on media, you don't have to cover the leaves with moss except for the very edges of the leaf if it is curly and won't stay flat on the media surface. Otherwise you can form small "hills" of media in your pot to accomodate curlier leaves so that they remain in contact with the media.
And yes, cutting the leaves into smaller portions helps them stay in contact with the media, but I also cut the leaves of D. filiformis or D. binata so that I can actually fit them into the container I want to start them in.

You really don't have to worry too much about getting a huge leaf section with the petiole for D. capensis, but with D. spatulata and rosetted species, I just grab the petiole (see diagram below) of the leaf with tweezers and pull it off so that I get a good portion of the petiole with the cutting. This can help improve the strike rate for smaller-leaved sundews. Sometimes I pull the whole stipule (the part of the petiole that connects to the stem) off as well, but this isn't required unless you're propagating petiolaris sundews or pygmies. If the plant is full-sized (which is when the strike rate is also best), then you won't have to worry as much about getting a huge leaf portion. For younger, weaker plants, scissors are a better option, since it will be harder to pull off leaves from the sundew without damaging the plant, but I usually don't have as high of a strike rate with younger plants.

And just for reference, here is a diagram of the D. capensis 'Albino' leaf so you know what I'm talking about with the "petiole":

[richardhole]

Hello

When you grow them in water, do you break off the plantlets as soon as they form and plant them in the pot where you intend to leave the Drosera grow to full size?
Do you put them in full sun perhaps a week or two after they are planted?

Also is there much advantage of growing the leaf cutting in distilled water. I have a water ionizer that can produce slightly acidic ionized water. It has a filter and purifier that still allows essential minerals into drinking water. Should that be all right to use? I read that distilled water may have an advantage to reduce algae.

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

[Joseph Clemens]

Here's a pic of Drosera capensis producing plantlets from leaves floating in water -->

I watch for roots to begin growing before I remove the plantlets to pot up separately. I keep in very high humidity until they have begun to grow vigorously. They can also be removed and planted before they form roots, but their adjustment takes longer.

I usually use purified water, but I don't know that it's essential. Probably doesn't hurt.

The red bumps forming at the bases of tentacles (on the lamina) are the beginnings of buds that will soon grow into plantlets.

[Dave Evans]

Dec 4, 2010 0:37:47 GMT richardhole said:

Hello

When you grow them in water, do you break off the plantlets as soon as they form and plant them in the pot where you intend to leave the Drosera grow to full size?

No, don't break off the plantlets. But you can cut the leaf they are growing from into further pieces as you transfer them out of the water and into soil. They are growing new roots and roots will take over feeding the new plants from the leaf cutting in their own time frame.

Do you put them in full sun perhaps a week or two after they are planted?

Depends on how fast/well they are developing; what species, ect... You'll have to play-it-by-ear. Some will be further along than others.

[richardhole]

Hello

I thought the leaves would have to be floated horizontally on the surface of the water with the tentacles facing upwards. The photo above shows the leaves under water.

Is it better to cover the container of water with a lid, and if so, should some ventilation be allowed? A problem with covering the plants with a lid is that it can encourage fungi and make the plants softer.

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

[Joseph Clemens]

Like Dave Evans said, I too, remove the forming plantlets once they form roots, by carefully taking a small piece of the "mother" leaf that the plantlet is attached too, with it - this helps to ensure that the new roots and plantlet aren't harmed as they are moved into a normal growing environment.

My photo shows two leaves cut from an adult Drosera capensis plant. They are in a small rectangular acrylic box with a tight-fitting friction top lid (I like to use the ones with lids to help reduce evaporation). I find that it is quite satisfactory, as long as the leaves remain submerged and are well illuminated.

[richardhole]

Hello

Do you get as many successful strikes or as many plantlets forming when the leaves are completely submerged in water as you would it the leaves are floating on the surface?
Would this apply to all the species of Drosera that I mentioned?

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

[Joseph Clemens]

I think that when people describe the technique of floating Drosera leaves in water to prompt the formation of plantlets, they don't actually mean "float on surface of water". I never really tried to get the leaves to float - they sink naturally. If they dry out, they die. Keeping them from drying out while plantlets form has been my goal. The atmosphere here in Tucson, AZ is extremely dry. Right now our humidity is in the single digits. Everything around here has a tendency to dry out very quickly. Submerged in water in sealed containers, even sometimes a Ziploc plastic bag, has worked very well.

It works for all the plants on your list except Drosera indica - I have not ever been able to get its leaves to sprout plantlets. I don't know of anyone who has. However, in the future, I will probably continue to try. I have even managed to get leaves of Drosera regia to sprout plantlets by submerging them in water.

I do thoroughly rinse off the leaf surface (especially of any prey remnants), before inserting into the water.

[richardhole]

Hello

I have some clear round containers here that have been used for food that I could wash and use. They are about 4 inches diameter and 1.5 inches high. What is the most leaves that could be soaked in each container? I thought I could have about 6 of the larger longer leaves like for Drosera capensis. Would a dozen in one container be too many?

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.

[Joseph Clemens]

I would hesitate to crowd them too much, only because it will be difficult to remove the forming plantlets without harming them.

[Dave Evans]

Dec 4, 2010 6:51:19 GMT Joseph Clemens said:

I think that when people describe the technique of floating Drosera leaves in water to prompt the formation of plantlets, they don't actually mean "float on surface of water". I never really tried to get the leaves to float - they sink naturally. If they dry out, they die. Keeping them from drying out while plantlets form has been my goal.

Dear Joseph,

I've found it better to keep the water level low, so that some 40-50% of the lamia is above water. I keep the leaves horizontal and the water shallow, about 1/4 to 1/2 cm..

You can add clean quartz sand too, having some substrate speeds up the root development.

[Joseph Clemens]

Dave Evans,
Thanks for those ideas. The next time I use this technique, I will try keeping more lamina surface exposed to air by using some sand and water in plastic petri dishes (I have some left over from my college T.C. days). I will need to get some more petri seal or parafilm tape so they don't dry out too quickly.

[richardhole]

Hello

There would be some advantages of using only a small amount of water because a large quantity of distilled water could be expensive to buy if it is used.

I do have a purifier to produce ionized drinking water but it may not be suitable as www.thecps.org.uk/content/view/87/40/ states:
“The water must be suitable for CPs and not tap water. At first I used rainwater that had been boiled and allowed to cool, although this worked okay, I found I had to change it often as it would turn green with algae after a week or three. I then switched to using ‘Deionised Water’ from Halfords, this never seems to develop algae and so does not need to be changed. I would expect distilled water and RO filtered water to be similar to ‘Deionised Water’ in resisting algae.
If you do see any sign of algae, change the water. “

Have you found distilled water to be much better than purified drinking water at least as far as reducing algae goes?

A small amount of water would also enable the leaves to be floated tentacle side up like advised at www.carnivorousplants.org/howto/Propagation/DroseraLeafCuttings.php
This is because the water would be so shallow that they would not tip over or sink in the water much.

A problem with adding sand is that it could also introduce algae as it may not be fully sterile and nutrient free even if it is well washed. I am not sure if this would be the case. If the sand has to be thoroughly washed or boiled it and possibly replaced as much as the water it would mean extra work.

I thought it may be safer to add about 1cm of water because half of it may soon evaporate and condense on the side of the sealed container. The bottom of these containers is also not level. Another option would be to float the leaves possibly on some plastic mesh or fly screen or capillary mat possibly supported by polystyrene foam. That way they would always be near the surface of the water.

Any more suggestions would be welcome.

Your help is appreciated
Regards Richard.