This has been one of the trickier butterworts to grow in my conditions. Like many of the other species from Mexico, #Pinguicula macrophylla loses its carnivorous leaves during the dry season. Many Mexican butterworts trade their sticky foliage for harmless succulent leaves in the winter, but this one goes a step further by forming a compact bulb under the soil. In either case, the seasonal loss of large dewy leaves beautifully demonstrates the costs of carnivory.

#Gymnocalycium baldianum, spider #cactus (S America)
#Eryngium giganteum, Miss Willmott's #ghost (Asia)
#Pinguicula agnata, a #butterwort species (S America)
#Monarda fistulosa, wild bergamot (N America)

#utsummerschool /2