Carnivorous Plant

Published 10:20 am Tuesday, May 19, 2020

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Yellow pitcher plant (Sarracenia flava) is a native wetland carnivorous plant that is in bloom on Pocosin Lakes National Refuge. The stand is under a power line on the east side of State Route 94 16 miles south of Columbia. The plants on Pocosin Lakes are growing in muck soil that is many feet deep and saturated to the surface year-round. An insect is attracted to the sweet nectar aroma of the plant. But if it lands on the slippery funnel it will drop down into a liquid produced by the plant, which slowly breaks down the trapped bug and provides nutrients needed by the plant to thrive.