remember to pay attention to plants as you would pets if you want them to thrive. wipe the dust off their leaves, spray them with water, spend time observing their changes. I’ve found that a lot of plants will tell you what they need if you give your energy and listen.
ugh, aristos are SO cool. for those new to this blog who havent seen me raving about the Nepenthes plant family, theyre a large group of carnivorous pitcher plants native to the jungles of Asia. Nepenthes aristolochioides is a critically endangered highland species from this family native to Sumatra that’s very well known for its FREAKISH pitcher morphology:
these are highly sought after by collectors (when they’re raised and grown legally in captivity, that is). prices for a young purebred plant are usually between $80-$120+, and they’re slow and hard to grow. people usually spring for hybrids between them and other species, which are easier to take care of and way cheaper, although they might not have as much of a distinctive shape. for example, here’s a cross between Nepenthes spectabilis and Nepenthes aristolochioides bred by Borneo Exotics (she has her mother’s chub):
Who wants to go to Chicago with me to Garfield Park Conservatory see the 25+ ft bloom stalk on their Agave americana that they have now literally had to remove glass roof tiles to allow to grow through the top of the conservatory?
Look at how utterly ridiculous this bloom is going to be. Agave are related to asparagus so right now yeah it just looks like a very very tall asparagus
I was going to say I’ve never seen an agave that tall– but then I remembered that it’s so much more humid in Chicago than Arizona. She’s just going wild with all the water out there!
If, like me, this is your first time hearing about this and you wanna know more
ifesbob 