Q: About lithophytic Utricularia

• U. cornuta on rock
• Utricularia nephrophylla

A: Lithophytic species live on wet surfaces of mossy rocks, cliffs, and inselbergs. They may be plentiful in the mist zones of waterfalls.

Very few lithophytic species are in cultivation, U. nephrophylla being the main exception. A survey I did as I wrote the book turned up that horticulturists were also growing the lithophytic U. andongensis, U. aureomaculata, U. garrettii, U. furcellata, U. geminiloba, U. kumaonensis, and U. striatula. Not a very big list! I have also seen U. cornuta, a plant that grows well as an affixed aquatic, growing as a lithophyte in South Carolina.

I suspect that for these plants, either a mix as suggested for the epiphytic species (but kept on the wet side), or a simple terrestrial soil mix might be effective. Larger species might do better in a Sphagnum slurry. If possible, pot them in live Sphagnum, and contact me to tell me about your luck!

Page citations: Rice, B.A. 2006a; Taylor, P. 1989; personal observations.