Description & Care

Nepenthes ventricosa is one of the easiest tropical pitcher plant species out there! It’s endemic to the Philippines, where it grows on the islands of Luzon, Panay, and Sibuyan at highland elevations.

It has many desirable traits, and passes most of these onto its offspring when used to make hybrids. N. ventricosa holds lots of pitchers at once, and the pitchers themselves are tough and fairly long-lasting. They have a strikingly constricted waist at their midpoint, and this is where the species gets its name (the Latin ‘ventricous’). The pitchers vary in color from plant to plant - some are deep red, most are some shade of pink or orange, while others are a creamy white. The famous ‘Porcelain’ clone is particularly desired for its ivory white pitchers.

When you first start growing Nepenthes you’ll likely encounter a plant labelled as N. ventricosa but which is actually N. ventricosa × alata, commonly known as N. × ventrata - this is a natural hybrid. This clone - which is actually sterile - is even more vigorous than either parent species, and is an excellent choice for your first tropical pitcher plant.

N. ventricosa is a very adaptable grower - I know growers who’ve successfully cultivated the species in lowland through to ultra-highland conditions. I think this species is a must in every collection, if only for making reliable hybrids. My mature female plant, originally from seed, flowers every year.

It’s also worth noting that there’s excellent genetic diversity in cultivation. Nurseries including Borneo Exotics and Exotica Plants have breeding pairs of N. ventricosa and have made horticultural species seed. Lots of nice variation in these greges.