Help if My Pitcher Plant is Turning Brown

Dormancy

• Before you panic because your pitcher plant is turning brown, examine it carefully. If it seems to be healthy and you haven't changed anything about its care recently, it may be going into dormancy. Most pitcher plants require a dormant season, much like other perennial plants. Dormancy is triggered by cooler weather and should be allowed to proceed unhindered. As with any dormant plant, you should water only minimally until growth begins again in spring. A pitcher plant that requires dormancy but doesn't get an opportunity to rest will weaken and die over time.

Water and Nutrition

• Pitcher plants don't require fertilization, because they get the additional nutrients they require from digesting insects. If you're fertilizing a pitcher plant that's turning brown, the fertilizer may be to blame. Any water you provide the plant should be low in both salts and minerals, a feat that can be difficult to achieve with tap water. Impure water can cause death in any carnivorous plant; remember, they naturally grow in boggy areas with very few available minerals and nutrients. Encourage standing water in the bottom 1 to 2 inches of the pot by sitting it in a deep saucer.

Proper Growing Medium

• Pitcher plants cannot be grown in potting soil with any mark of success. They're native to bogs, and this is the condition that you should try to emulate. Most growers recommend a medium based on peat and sand, though the ratios vary widely. The goal is to provide a loose medium that is just firm enough to hold the roots of the plant. You do not want a tight and absorbent medium that will hold water against the crown of the plant, because this will cause it to rot.

Light and Humidity

• Pitcher plants prefer full-sun locations, but you must be careful if your plants are located in a window because they may receive too much direct sun that's been amplified by the window and burn. It's best to place them in a bright window where the sun doesn't shine directly, or light them with florescent tubes. Proper humidity for a pitcher plant is very high, and to meet this need they're often grown in terrariums or greenhouses.