May

8

Savage Gardening (Or, “Feed Me, Seymour!”)

Posted by Christopher Waldrop

May 8, 2007 |

Don’t forget to enter the Just Write Summer Reading Contest!

Like a lot of kids, especially kids who were geeks with an interest in science, I had a venus flytrap. It grew in my windowsill. It didn’t just grow, it thrived, feeding on lots of insects, and then it died. Aside from science fiction movies like Little Shop of Horrors, Day of the Triffids, and, well, Little Shop of Horrors (the musical), I forgot about carnivorous plants until my wife found a copy of Carnivorous Plants by Paul Temple (Royal Horticultural Society, 1988) in a used bookstore. Carnivorous Plants by Paul Temple

It’s a great introduction to these fascinating and weird plants, and did more than just reintroduce me to the plant I once grew on my windowsill. It revealed a world of plant carnivory I was completely unaware of: sundews, pitcher plants, cobra lilies, butterworts, and bladderworts…the common names only hint at the beauty and strangeness of these plants. They’re found on every continent except Antarctica, with habitats ranging from underwater to deserts. Unless you’re like me and have a black thumb, try adding a few meat-eaters to your plant collection. For good gardening tips, of course, visit the good folks over at Empty Nest, but here are some books to help you start growing your own savage garden:

The Savage Garden: Cultivating Carnivorous Plants by Peter D’Amato (Ten Speed Press, 1998)

Peter D’Amato is best known as the operator of California Carnivores, the best source in the United States for carnivorous plants.

 

 

 

 

His book is also an excellent place to start for anyone interested in trying out carnivorous plants. Very detailed, specific information for all types of carnivorous plants is given. This book covers what you should do, and what you absolutely shouldn’t do, to have a successful carnivorous plant collection.

Growing Carnivorous Plants by Barry A. Rice (Timber Press, 2006)barryrice.jpg

A man of many talents (including photographer, writer, and astronomer) Barry A. Rice’s book is amazing in its scope. His book includes a brief history of both the evolution of carnivorous plants as well as the evolution of our understanding (scientists were at first reluctant to believe plants could or would eat insects), detailed instructions on cultivating plants, a chapter on plants that may or may not be carnivorous, and a final chapter on conservation. The importance of conservation is a running theme throughout the book, though, and, as he explains, carnivorous plants are highly specialized and easily threatened by even small changes to their environment. The other major plus: the photographs. Rice is a dedicated grower who made almost all the photographs for the book himself. Like D’Amato, Rice has a great sense of humor which you get both from the book and his web site. While you’re there be sure to check out the Galleria Carnivora.

For a more specialized book, check out Donald Schnell’s Carnivorous Plants of The dschnell.jpgUnited States And Canada (Timber Press, 2002, 2nd ed.). Another book with gorgeous photographs, Schnell’s book isn’t written for growers, although it does contain some growing tips, but is more of a catalog of carnivorous plants of North America, from Sarracenia purpurea, the pitcher plant that spans the Eastern side of the continent, to Utricularia amythestina, a beautiful bladderwort found only in the very Southern tip of Florida.

It still belongs in the library of anyone with an interest in these plants.

Two other books that are heavier on specific plant information than cultivation are Adrian Slack’s Carnivorous Plants (MIT Press, 1979) and A Guide To Carnivorous Plants of the World by Gordon Cheers (Collins-Angus & Robertson, 1992).

Even if growing is your main interest these books still have great photographs and are fascinating reference books, especially if you’re interested in species found outside the United States.

 


Comments

2 Comments so far

  1. James on May 8, 2007 2:55 pm

    Yum.

  2. Nor Iron Bars A Cage. :: Just Write on January 9, 2008 1:12 am

    [...] by locking them in small spaces. And it’s not just animals, either. Back when I was growing carnivorous plants I listened to several debates between growers about the value of saving species from extinction. [...]

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