Growing pitcher plants in Singapore

Pitcher perfect
Fans of carnivorous plants love them for their pretty looks and insect-trapping ability
Tay Suan Chiang, Straits Times 15 Mar 08;

THE balcony in teacher Cindy Ng's five-room HDB flat at Telok Blangah Crescent is a pretty sight to behold but a nightmare for insects.

It is filled with more than 100 pots of carnivorous plants, such as pitcher plants, sundews, butterworts and the famed Venus fly traps. Carnivorous plants are so called because they feed on insects.

And, yes, even though she lives on the 14th floor, her plants have trapped insects.

The 35-year-old primary school science teacher has been growing them for the last nine years. To ensure that her plants grow well, she installed a misting system in the balcony and uses fluorescent lighting to simulate sunlight and encourage healthy growth.

Mrs Ng, who has no children, says she likes Venus fly traps because of their ability to trap insects. 'It's fascinating to watch the movement of the fly traps,' she says.

As for pitcher plants, she is attracted to them because of their large variety. Some of hers are so tiny, the pitchers are the size of a thumbnail, while others are about 10cm long.

Her collection even drew pitcher plant specialists Robert Cantley and Diana Williams from award-winning Sri Lanka-based Borneo Exotics to her flat last year. She recalls that Ms Williams praised her for regularly pruning her pitcher plants.

Borneo Exotics will have a display at the upcoming Singapore Garden Festival in July. Visitors will be able to see the largest specimen of pitcher plants ever exhibited in Singapore. (See other story)

While other greenery and flora such as money plants and orchids are hot favourites with Singaporeans, an increasing number are also growing carnivorous plants.

A sales manager at World Farm nursery, Mr Lee Meng Kwan, says they are especially popular with parents as gifts for their kids. 'Carnivorous plants like the Venus fly trap are educational tools to teach kids how plants eat,' he says.

Mr Phillipe Noor, 28, is another fan of carnivorous plants. The student, who lives in a four-bedroom apartment at Bukit Gombak, has converted one bedroom into a 'cool room' for his plants.

He grows highland pitcher plants that require a cool environment. His air-conditioning is switched on all day and the temperature is set at 16 deg C. He says the electricity bill is probably in the 'three-digits' range.

As the bedroom is insect-free, the pitcher plants are unable to trap insects, so they are occasionally fed crickets.

For Mr Sandy Soh, it is the carnivorous plants' ability to capture insects that attracted him. The 33-year-old, who runs a pet service business, has been growing a variety of pitcher plants, Venus fly traps and sundews at his Bukit Batok semi-detached home for the past two years.

Like Mrs Ng, he has also specially installed fluorescent lighting in his living room for his sundews. He says of his plants: 'They're not only pretty to look at but are also good for trapping mosquitoes.'

Pitcher plants on show
Straits Times 15 Mar 08;

WHEN visitors to London's world-famous annual Chelsea Flower Show stop by the plant display set up by pitcher plant specialists Borneo Exotics, they are usually awe-struck.

'The fascination factor is high,' says Briton Robert Cantley (below left), 49, who is managing director of the Sri Lanka-based firm that has been exhibiting at the show for the last three years.

Its display at last year's show won a coveted gold medal - and no wonder. Sinister-looking, carnivorous pitcher plants of varying colours such as greens, reds and dark browns nestled among moss in a jungle-like environment.

Mr Cantley, together with Borneo Exotic director Diana Williams (below right), 54, are set to recreate a display at the upcoming Singapore Garden Festival (SGF) that will also wow visitors. They will be competing in the Fantasy Gardens category at SGF, where the top prize is a gold medal.

They showcased a small selection of pitcher plants at the first SGF in 2006, and are now back with a bigger display.

Borneo Exotics is the world's leading nursery for the tropical pitcher plants and was started by Mr Cantley, a former engineer, 11 years ago. It not only sells pitcher plants around the world, but also conserves the endangered species by cultivating them.

The biggest pitcher plant it has in the nursery in Sri Lanka is the black Nepenthes Truncata, which has pitchers that are about 30cm long, compared to the usual 8 to 15cm.

For their SGF display, all the pitcher plants will be flown in from Sri Lanka. Each pitcher will be individually bubble-wrapped before being packed in a foam box for the 31/2-hour flight to Singapore.

'This will ensure that each plant is in top form and ready to be unveiled to visitors,' says Ms Williams.