A Beginner's Guide To Growing Tropical Pitcher Plants (Nepenthes) Indoors

If you've gotten the hang of keeping your monsteras and philodendrons happy and are ready to level up your houseplant collection with more unique varieties, might we suggest a pitcher plant? These carnivorous plants are fascinating to watch—especially when you consider the modifications that have helped them survive for the past millions of years.

In the wild, you'll find highland and lowland varieties of tropical pitcher plants, explains Domonick Gravine, the owner of Redleaf Exotics, a carnivorous plant nursery that specializes in Nepenthes. The highland varieties are more tolerant of cooler temperatures at night, while the lowland varieties prefer more heat.

What makes both types of Nepenthes special is the way they have adapted to survive in their native habitats. These plants have long grown in nutrient-poor soil, so they've needed to devise other methods for getting valuable minerals. That's where the "pitcher" part of their name comes in; over time, Nepenthes have developed modified leaves that lure and trap prey.

These funky leaf sacs look like pitchers of water, and each one can hold up to 3.5 liters of digestive fluid (that's nearly 15 cups' worth!). Once the plant catches an animal, it digests it in this pitcher fluid to extract the nutrients it isn't getting from its soil.

Nepenthes come in all shapes and sizes, and they can sustain themselves using this unique pitcher adaptation for a long, long time. Carnivorous plant specialist Damon Collingsworth notes that he's kept his first Nepenthes for over 30 years now, and the nursery he owns, California Carnivores, has ones dating back to the Victorian era.

They usually feast on bugs and insects, but larger plants can even stomach animals like mice and birds, Collingsworth explains. Once the plant traps these critters, their pitchers will break them down into nutrients like nitrogen and phosphate, which the plant then uses to grow. The process doesn't look as violent as it sounds, and it shouldn't lead to any funky odors either—as evidenced by this incredible video of a pitcher digesting a mouse in Collingsworth's nursery.

Beyond the hundred or so (and counting!) species of tropical pitcher plants you'll find in the wild, there are now thousands of Nepenthes hybrids. Hybrids are created by selectively breeding two species, and Gravine notes they're the way to go for anyone new to the plant.

"If it has more than two names in it, it's usually an easy-to-grow plant," he explains, due to what's known as hybrid vigor. "When you cross two different species together, that genetic difference tends to make the hybrids more vigorous. Those will be easier to grow," echoes Collingsworth.

When searching for the right spot in your home to place a pitcher plant, look for the light. "Since pitcher plants like bright light, a spot near a window will help them thrive. Specifically, near an east- or west-facing window is ideal," says Brooke Blocker, the founder of Outside In.

Blocker notes that since tropical pitcher plants tend to grow in wet, steamy regions in the wild, they need a certain amount of warmth and higher humidity when brought indoors. Gravine suggests setting yours up next to a humidifier.

When taking home a new tropical pitcher plant, you can also place it in an enclosed environment like an empty fish tank or large terrarium to get it acclimated to your space. This will better replicate the humid conditions it probably grew accustomed to in the nursery: Put your plant in a closed space to start, to trap moisture, and then gradually pull back the lid off the container over the course of a few days. Plants don't like drastic changes, Gravine explains, but "as the plant gets a feel for the light and the conditions, you can get it out into the house a little more."

"Nepenthes don't want to be wet in their feet all the time or they'll rot," says Gravine. "They have very fine roots, almost like hair, so let them approach dryness before you water them."

Tropical pitcher plants have vastly different soil needs than most other popular houseplants. Since this plant is used to nutrient-poor conditions and evolved to get its minerals from prey—not soil—typical houseplant potting mixes will be far too rich for them.

"Since Nepenthes are tropical plants, they won't tolerate cold or extreme heat. But indoors, that shouldn't be an issue you have to worry about," Blocker explains. "Typically, as long as it's a temperature that you are comfortable living in, the plant will be comfortable too."

Your Nepenthes should thrive in any plastic pot or net basket (this is a great plant to hang from a wall or ceiling), as long as it's not too big. The plant should fit snugly.

Now for the fun part, feeding your pitchers! Unless your home already has critters that your Nepenthes can catch, you'll need to source the plant's food yourself.