N. philippinensis "Old Clone"
purchase date: 6 / 03
arrived as a rooted cutting
plant origin: received from hobbyist in trade
photo taken : 4 / 04
Nepenthes philippinensis is a species I don't know much about. I have read that it is considered a lowlander, but I grow it outdoors with my highlanders. I have two varieties. I wasn't aware there were more than one until recently. I traded out some cuttings and received what was called "the true N. philippinensis" or "old clone". The "true" variety has grown more vigorously than my other one. The pitchers also resemble a "spotted N. alata" form but the peristome is more oval. My other variety has produced mainly the yellow / greener pitchers. The "old clone" is definitely doing better than the other one. This species does stress during winter with lower temperatures and ceases growing. Then when the temps rise in spring, they start growing again. As I said before, I like to crossover species from the Philippines to outdoor conditions if possible. For some reason they do pretty good as intermediates. Since N. philippinensis isn't terribly pricey, it was worth a try outdoors. So far so good! Both plants are alive and well.
RATING
lowlander
Cultivation: slow to moderate grower outdoors,
probably fairly easy indoors as a lowlander in typical lowland conditions
Market availability: size 3, larger plants to
rooted cuttings; fairly common
Species variability: possibly locality differences,
haven't seen any differences from retailers as of late
$ / size: inexpensive; $15.00 and up
Cuttings: none available for trade
Sex: old clone is female