Common name: Albany Pitcher Plant, West Australian pitcher plant Scientific name: Cephalotus follicularis Common Info: Considered by many to be the holy grail of carnivorous plants, Cephalotus follicularis is one of the most desired of the group. The plants grow naturally at the edge of swamps in a Mediterranean type climate with warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters although being near the Australian coastline, their main habitat is cooler than that of the nearby inland areas. The Indian moccasin shaped pitchers grow in a rosette form out of the crown and are elaborately designed for catching insects with many intricate details including nectar covered, toothed peristomes and translucent windows covering the hood that protects the bowl of the pitcher.   Care: We use a potting mix of 25% Canadian sphagnum peat moss, 25% perlite and 50% Target play sand to imitate the sandy loam that the plants grow in naturally. A deep pot is best as the roots grow quite deep in search of water. Unlike Dionaea and Drosera, cephalotus does not tolerate sitting in standing water but fortunately, as the recommended potting mix retains moisture well, a watering once or twice a week is all a plant needs. The plants do well under varied light conditions, developing smaller traps with much red coloring in full sun and larger green traps under artificial light. Cephalotus is also a very good terrarium plant because of their smaller size and due to the fact that they do very well under artificial lighting. The plant will cease growth with cooler temperatures in winter and may even have pitchers die back but will resume growth with much vigor in spring.