Nepenthes Eustachya Cultivation
Nepenthes eustachya is an easy lowland plant to intermediate plant which is very similar to N. alata.
Cultivating Ease - Easy
Type - This plant is a true lowland, being found from sea level to 1600M. Although it can grow as a lowland, I find it so easy as an intermediate that I grow it that way.
Temperature - Daytime temperatures can range from 80-95 degrees. Nighttimes temps between 60 degrees and 80 degrees.
Humidity - This plant can tolerate lower humidity than most Nepenthes, another trait similar to Nepenthes alata with which it had been once combined. I would recommend keeping the humidity above 65%.
Light - Bright light to full (diffused) sunlight. It grows very well in a large chamber under lights.
Moisture - Keep the plant moist. I usually grow this plant on a tray method. I sit the pot on about 1" of water, and over a week or two the water will evaporate and the soil will start to dry a bit. I then water again.
Soil - Long Fiber Sphagnum
Size - The plant will eventually start climbing, at which time it may have to be pruned. The leaves can be quite long and the pitchers can easily exceed a foot in length.
Details: An easy plant that produces beautifully shaped and colored pitchers. Eustachya will fork its main growing vine into several vines, as well as produce new vines from the base of the plant. It is a fast growing plant, and you should give it some sort of support structure on which to climb. The pitchers are very long and slender, and the tendrils need to wrap around something to stabilize the pitcher. The tendrils can be very thin near the leaf, and much thicker near the pitcher.
Propagation - Very easy from cuttings.
Forms - Typical - Greenish pitchers with a candy
cane striped peristome
Green - Green pitchers with green peristome.
White - Pale with red blotches and candy cane striped peristome
Red - Tinged mostly to completely red and without a candy cane striped peristome
Purple - Tinged mostly to completely purple and without a candy cane striped
peristome.
Nepenthes eustachia "red" form. Note that the tendril is much
thinner near the leaf, and much thicker near the pitcher.