I found these pitcher plants today while on a CNPA Foothills Region photo outing to the NC Arboretum in Asheville. The Arboretum is a wonderful resource for people who can get to it (ie, people living in the western part of the state), and we try to get there at least once a year to browse the gardens. This was a good day for browsing.
These pitcher plants were growing in “floating islands” in one of the pools in the formal gardens at the Arboretum, and several small islands contained clusters of the plants. There were at least two different colors of pitchers in the pools, 
and (except for the bright sunshine) they were perfectly displayed for photographing. Even with a polarizing filter to reduce reflections the photos came out with harsh shadows and high contrast, but sometimes you just have to take what you can get!
The pitcher plant to the left shows the pitcher which traps insects and digests them in the liquid in the well and in addition the flower of the plant which is not often shown. The green flower is almost spent in this photo, and the brown tips of the petals are not very showy as flowers go.
But surely the pitcher plant thinks the flower is beautiful!
About Tom
Professor Emeritus of Chemistry, Appalachian State University.
Pitcher Plants
These pitcher plants were growing in “floating islands” in one of the pools in the formal gardens at the Arboretum, and several small islands contained clusters of the plants. There were at least two different colors of pitchers in the pools,
and (except for the bright sunshine) they were perfectly displayed for photographing. Even with a polarizing filter to reduce reflections the photos came out with harsh shadows and high contrast, but sometimes you just have to take what you can get!
The pitcher plant to the left shows the pitcher which traps insects and digests them in the liquid in the well and in addition the flower of the plant which is not often shown. The green flower is almost spent in this photo, and the brown tips of the petals are not very showy as flowers go.
But surely the pitcher plant thinks the flower is beautiful!
About Tom
Professor Emeritus of Chemistry, Appalachian State University.