Drosera adelae - the Lance Leaf Sundew
General:
First description by F. Muell (1864)
You can find Drosera adelae in the tropical rainforests of Queensland (northeast of Australia) - precise said in the Rockingham Bay of Hinchinbrook national park. There is - of course - tropical
climate with rainfalls until 4400 mm in the year. At the short,
mild winters it is a bit drier, but the temperature isn't cooler
than 15°C / 59°F. In the average of the year there are
about 300 sunny days. Drosera adelae is from the same family as
Drosera prolifera and Drosera schizandra (they are close related) - these 3 sundews are
often called the "3 Queensland Sisters". Of these group
Drosera adelae is the easiest plant in cultivation. The leaves
arrive in nature a length of about 20 cm / 8 inches (maximum 25
cm / 10 inches). In culture the leaves often arrive a half of
this length. The length of the leaf interrelates also with the
amount of light (more light = smaller leaves). By enough light the leaves reach red color. If a prey is catched the leaf doesn't move much - not such like Dorsera capensis. The plant has a strong branched root-system and can develop new plants from the roots.
Culture:
Use the water tray method (always 1/2 - 1 inch water in height) all
the year. The recommend temperature is between 20°C / 68°C
and 33°C / 92°F and the recommend humidity is 70-80%.
At a humidity lower than 65% the plant often stops producing glue
drops. Higher humidity doesn't cause damage/injury - but in come cases fungus is comming. My plants are growing all the year with high humidity - they are placed in the nepenthes terrarium. You should put the plant to a bight place without direct
sunlight in summer (take e.g. a east windowsill place). Some people (as
I too) put Drosera adelae into the terrarium with Nepenthes plants.
For soil I use a mixture of peat-sand 3:1. Very important: Never
use fertilizers - it's a perfect poison.
Propagation: In nature the plant is producing seed and offshoots.
In culture I don't know a person which got seed after flowering
- so you should use the offshoots. An other way are leaf cuttings
(they are easy to do).
Next photo: round leaves? Yes - it is Drosera adelae - as a young plant...
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