Thunderchild Flowering Crab vs Purple Pitcher Plant - TreeTime.ca

Thunderchild Flowering Crab vs Purple Pitcher Plant

Malus x adstringens Thunderchild

Sarracenia purpurea

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2025)

CUSTOM GROW

Thunderchild Flowering Crab
Purple Pitcher Plant

Thunderchild Flowering Crab is a hybrid crab apple known for its attractive and fragrant dark pink blossoms and deep purple mature leaves.

Tree farmers will find this hybrid appealing as a pollinator for other apples, while home growers will enjoy the red pome's ability to attract flocks of Cedar Waxwings in the early spring.

This species is reportedly resistant to fireblight.

Purple Pitcher Plant is a native carnivorous plant, easily recognized by its purple-tinged, tubular pitchers that capture and digest insects. The nectar along the rim attracts insects to the pitcher, where slippery surfaces and downward-pointing hairs cause them to fall into the fluid below. Once inside, they are broken down, providing nutrients that allow the plant to thrive in nutrient-poor soils.
The plant produces nodding, purple-red flowers held high above the leaves. Interestingly, these blooms are pollinated by the Pitcher Plant Fly (Fletcherimyia fletcheri), whose larvae live in the fluid of the pitchers and feed on some of the trapped insects. It can be found in bogs, fens, and other wetlands. It is well-suited for wetland gardens, restoration, and naturalisation projects.
The Purple Pitcher Plant can be challenging to grow because of its specific requirements. It thrives in consistently moist (but not waterlogged), acidic soil, with a peat-and-sand mix typically recommended. The plant is sensitive to fertilizers, dissolved salts, and chlorinated water. When given the right conditions, full sun will bring out its brightest colors.
The Purple Pitcher Plant is the provincial flower of Newfoundland & Labrador.

Thunderchild Flowering Crab Quick Facts

Purple Pitcher Plant Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 2b
Height: 5 m (15 ft)
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: wet
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: medium
Life span: medium
Life span: medium
Growth form: decumbent to upright, colony-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - medium
Suckering: none


Foliage: dark purple leaves
Foliage: red to purple, tubular pitchers with hooded tops
Fall colour: dark red
Flowers: dark pink blossoms
Flowers: large nodding red flowers
Bloom time: summer
Fruit: small red pomes that hang through the winter
Berries: small red pomes that hang through the winter
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: huntsmans cup, northern pitcher plant