Carnivorous Plant Clone Wiki
Awaiting Mike's review. This entry was AI-extracted from forum posts. Treat specifics as a working draft until reviewed.

sarracenia oreophila

Sarracenia oreophila 'purple throat' (MK-O17, Mike King 017)

First described
2012
Type
individual clone foundation breeder

Origin

From Mike King's oreophila accession series — MK-O17 is the Mike-King designation. Wild locality not specified in the source thread.

History

  • 2012-05-11 — Mike's first thread post. Early-spring pitcher with almost no pigment, just a hint of red at the throat
  • 2012-08-12 — summer pitchers showing the slight red purple starting to develop
  • 2015-08-01 — the showpiece set of photos (post #5). Mike: "None of the pictures above do this clone justice, but the pictures below do!" — late-summer ornate pitchers with intense throat coloration while other oreos are senescing
  • 2018, 2019, 2021 — continued documentation; 2021 post adds Mike's remark that this clone has been under-utilized in breeding and that he made fresh crosses that year

Standout traits

  • Late-season transformation. The dull-early/ornate-late seasonal arc is the central distinguishing feature.
  • Purple/wine-toned throat veins that develop only on late traps
  • Cold-spring vigor — Mike calls out oreophila cold-grow-season tolerance generally as a breeding-trait opportunity, with this clone as an under-explored donor

Cultivation notes

Outdoor Northern California. To get the showpiece late traps, the plant needs to push past the early phyllodia stage with good conditions.

Photos

Seven Mike-source photos imported, 2012-2021. See photos[].

Standout traits

  • Late-season showstopper: dull early-spring pitchers, then dramatic late-summer/early-fall traps with intense red-veined ornate purple throat
  • Ornate veining develops only on late traps after phyllodia have started forming
  • Mike (post #14, 2021-06-22): 'parents of arguably the best clone of S. oreophila out there' — implication: this clone has been used to breed something Mike rates higher
  • Cold-grow-season tolerance — Mike (post #13, 2019-06-11): oreophilas in general grow strong in cool springs, and this is an under-utilized breeding trait

Cultivation

Outdoor Northern California. Coaxing the late-season ornate traps takes time after the plant has started forming phyllodia. Spring pitchers may be unimpressive. Mike (post #5, 2015-08-06): "we cater to their every need and give them better conditions than the wild can provide. In return, they occasionally produce jaw-dropping traps like these!"

Photos (7)

Early spring trap — minimal pigment, 2012-05-11— Mike Wang
Summer trap, 2012-08-12— Mike Wang
Late-summer ornate trap, 2015-08-01 — this is the showpiece phenotype— Mike Wang
Ornate fall trap, 2015-08-01— Mike Wang
Throat detail, 2015-08-01— Mike Wang
Spring 2018-05-29— Mike Wang
2021-06-21— Mike Wang

Naming

Mike King accession code MK-O17. Mike's working description name ('purple throat') refers to the purple-pigmented throat that develops later in the grow season — not present on early spring pitchers.