My White-Top Pitcher Plants Are Open for Business!

Bugs, beware! My white-top pitcher plant, Sarracenia leucophylla, has sent up its flush of autumn traps. The two largest traps are open, and they are spectacular. And, I might add, with the weather warming up these past couple of days, they have been doing business. I was there just in time to witness the first

hornet fall prey to one of the newly opened leaves. It landed on the lid, poked around for a bit, then promptly dropped straight down into the tube and wedged hopelessly at the very bottom. Today, with the sun backlighting the leaves, I could see the shadows of more insects, some struggling to get out. It was a rather grim drama playing out under the bright sunshine, but I’m no fan of yellow jackets, and I find it hard to feel much pity for insects that have been known to land on me and sting me just for the apparent mean-spirited hell of it.

Anyway, the two newly opened leaves look stunning, and four more are in various stages of development. I thought I’d share a photo with you; click on the image to enlarge it. You’ll find more shots of the white-top and other North American pitcher plants in the Wildflowers & Outdoors section of my Photos page.