Fly getting drunk on nectar.

Nepenthes do not like moving around. Pick the spot you want it to grow in and leave it there. Give it a couple months to acclimate to its new environment.

You can top Nepenthes off to help keep them from growing out of whatever you are growing them in. This also encourages more shoots to form which makes for a fuller plant. For details on how to do this please see the Nepenthes Propagation area.

Highland Nepenthes make up roughly 70% of the Nepenthes family. Highlanders get their name because they grow in the 3,000 to 12,000 feet above sea level range. At this elevation things are cool, moist and covered with clouds. Average days are around 70 F - 85 F and the nights are 50 F - 65 F or less. Humidity fluctuates, generally lower during the day (60% - 70%) and 85% + at night. Some Highland Nepenthes must be grown in these ranges, while others acclimate to Lowland settings with no problem. Most of the Nepenthes we sell are easy to grow and growing range details are given in the descriptions.

Water - As with any carnivorous plant you should use bottled "sodium free" water, rain water or Reverse Osmosis water. Nepenthes do not like to sit in water logged soil. If you tray water, only put 1/4" of water in the tray and let it disappear before adding more. If you tray water AND mist often let the tray stay dry for a day or two before re-filling.
If you don't want to use the tray method and/or you are using a hanging basket then mist the soil good once or twice a day. A spray bottle will work for misting but it will wear you out. If you get one that works on compressed air (pump it up) it does a better job and is easier on you. You can get pump up misters at most garden centers for $8 - $16, well worth it.

If you grow Nepenthes in pots without drainage holes you are playing with fire. Un-drained containers should only be used by those experienced with Nepenthes growth.

Soil - Nepenthes need light airy soil. The mix can be as simple as 40/60 sphagnum peat moss/Perlite. Most Nepenthes would benefit from an additional part Vermiculite. Add to all this 1 part lava rocks, one part long fiber sphagnum moss and you have the deluxe Nepenthes recipe.
My favorite Nepenthes mix is peat, charcoal, fir bark, lava rock, coconut husk and medium perlite topped with long fiber sphagnum moss to aid with humidity around the plant.

Most Nepenthes grow well in pure Long Fiber Sphagnum Moss but this can get expensive. Using it makes over watering near impossible, but it may dry out if you forget about it.

When you get peat moss you should get it in the dry bale form. The small bags of pre-moistioned peat is most often contaminated and can kill your plants. We offer smaller bags for those of you that do not want to pick up a bale of sphagnum moss at a time. Available in the Soil section.

Light - Most Nepenthes will grow in partial shade but they will develop more color in brighter light. Avoid bright direct light for long periods, 50% sun for several hours is best.

You can also grow them under fluorescent lights. Use two 4' cool white bulbs and put them on a timer to go on and off with the sun, roughly. Keep the bulbs within 18" of the plant.
I have also had great success with a 100 watt fluorescent light bulb. I put it in a clamp on light with a rear deflector shield. It shines down from app 16" above. I have grown a Nepenthes Rafflesiana under this light for just over a year. It has excellent color and good growth. Heat buildup doesn't seem to be a problem, more than one in the same area probably would become problematic though.

Humidity - Highland Nepenthes generally require higher overall humidity than the lowland Nepenthes. Highlanders can usually take more of a fluctuation though. Humidity should never drop below 50% and should be considerably higher at night. You can grow some of the Nepenthes offered at nurseries in homes by misting it several times a day. Low humidity and low light will prevent pitchers from developing. If it's pitchering it's happy. Pitchers drying up suddenly can mean to low of humidity (mist more often) or lack of water.

Temperature - Highland Nepenthes need lower temperatures at night. A drop of at least 20 degrees is best. Some of the easier Highland Nepenthes can be grown in Lowland conditions. There are several hybrids that are easier to grow too.

The care of Lowland Nepenthes is slightly different than Highland Nepenthes.
Everything is the same except for temperature and humidity.

Lowland Nepenthes do not require a nighttime temperature drop. They generally grow in the 70 F - 95 F range. Some will acclimate to most homes so long as humidity is maintained.

Never let humidity go below 60% and for the fickle ones try to keep it constant and around 75%. Low humidity will prevent Nepenthes pitchers from developing. If it's pitchering it's happy. If the humidity drops to far or the plant becomes to dry the pitchers can dry out, fast.

There is a large range of Lowland Nepenthes that grow fine in normal household temperatures/humidity. Some are less picky about humidity than others.

Some Nepenthes can be grown as house plants! Grow them in a hanging basket in front of a window that gets at least a couple hours of direct sun and indirect sun most of the day.

Do not place them over vents or in areas where there is a lot of air movement. Avoid areas by glass doors unless it isn't opened very often.

Mist them several times a day and keep a moist top layer of sphagnum moss and many will do fine growing in front of your window. You need to use a pump up pressure mister, sold at most lawn and garden centers.

Nepenthes grown out in the open may loose their pitchers during the winter. It just depends on your environment. Once summer hits they should start pitchering again. This is almost always do to the lower light levels. If you increase the light it gets it will grow almost as fast in the winter as it does in the summer.

Some of the acceptable Nepenthes are listed at the top. Nepenthes we sell that do well as house plants are labeled as such in their description. I grow N. Ventricosa and Efflugent Koto in 35% humidity and they do fine, several others will too.