purple+pitcher+plant+_+sarracenia+purpurea

Family – Sarraceniaceae
 * Purple Pitcher Plant** (//Sarracenia purpurea//)

Also known as the Northern Pitcher Plant, //Sarracenia purpurea// is a carnivorous perennial native to North America. This plant is generally found in peat bogs in partial shade or sun. The pitcher plant has reddish purple venation on its green leaves, and tends to turn deeper red/purple colors toward the end of the growing season. Its leaves are highly modified to form a tubular structure which is closed at the bottom to form a pitcher shape. The tubular leaves then fill with rainwater and special digestive enzymes made by the plant. A sweet smelling nectar is produced by the plant in order to lure insects to it. The top portion of the pitcher is flared out and covered with downward facing hairs, which serves as a slippery surface and as a system to prevent captured prey from escaping back up and out of the pitcher. When an insect slips into the pitcher, they become trapped in the fluid stored in the base and are slowly digested and eventually absorbed by the plant. This plant photosynthesizes, but it lives in nutrient poor habitats, so it must supplement its nutrients with those from its prey.


 * [[image:http://plants.usda.gov/maps/large/SA/SAPU4.png width="650" height="540"]] ||

__References: __ //Minnesota Wildflowers //. (2012). Retrieved Feb 2012, from Sarracenia purpurea (Purple Pitcher Plant): http://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/purple-pitcher-plant

//Plants profile//. (2012, Feb). Retrieved Feb 2012, from United States Department of Agriculture: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SAPU4