Dewy Pine, Portuguese Sundew - Drosophyllum lusitanicum

Growing:
Typical

 

Light: I'm growing this plant in a south facing windowsill during the winter. Outside in full sun spring thru fall.

Soil: I grow mine in a mix of perlite, play sand, vermiculite, and a small amount of peat moss in an 8" plastic pot.

Water: Use rainwater, distilled, or reverse osmosis. This is the only carnivorous plant that likes it on the dry side. Do not over water it or it will die.

Humidity: Drosophyllum lusitanicum should have humidity no less then 40%.

Climate: The best growing conditions for Drosophyllum lusitanicum is between 40°F and 75°F. There is no dormancy required.

 

The Dewy Pine is found in dry and rocky parts of Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

Drosophyllum lusitanicum lures insects with a very sweet, honey smell. The leaves are covered with tentacles. On top of the tentacles there is a glad that produces the "glue" used to trap the insects that land on the leaves. The glue is very thick and sticky, and unlike the sundews, this glue pulls off the glands and sticks to the insect covering it's body and suffocating it. Sessile glands along the leafs surface secrete acids and enzymes which dissolve the insect. The leaf then reabsorb the nutrient rich fluid and after a few days the insect is digested leaving it's hard outer shell, the exoskeleton.

The only way to get a Dewy Pine is from seed. Leaf and root cuttings all fail. You should plant your seeds in a pot that they will spend there whole life in. Disturbing the roots often lead to death of the plant.

Dewy Pines grow fast. The top left picture was taken on 7/5/04. The top right picture was taken on 7/28/04. 23 days apart.

I was growing my Dewy Pine for over 2 and a half years. After flowering the plant declined and has died. I have germinated a new plant from seed on 4/23/07.

My plant I started from seed on 4/23/07 has finished flowering and lived. I was afraid when it started to flower because the last one I lost after flowering, and this one was not even a year old when it started to flower.
I think I killed the first plant by over watering it. It was looking terrible while it was flowering and the leaves looked wilted, so I increased the amount of water I was giving it. This plant looked the same but I did not change the watering at all. The plant now has 3 growth points and looks very good now.

You can read more about my germination techniques and see other pictures of the Dewy Pines I grow by clicking HERE.

 

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