Monkey Cups


Monkey cups are vines that grow in the tropical forests of South-East Asia. They have jug- shaped pitchers that grow up to 30 cm long and hang from vines that climb to the top of 15-metre trees. As the pitchers of monkey cups grow, they fill with liquid. When the liquid is ready to digest prey; the lid opens and the trap is ready.


Tips for growing


Monkey cups need warmth and moist air. If you don’t live in the tropics, you will need to grow them in a glasshouse. Plant them in damp soil in an empty fish tank. You


Pitchers as pots


In the Philippines and Borneo, large monkey cup pitchers


are sometimes used for cooking rice and vegetables.


may need overhead lighting. When they grow too large, cut off the top end of the plant, leaving a few pitchers attached. Plant this into the soil and a new plant will start to grow.


Medicine cup The liquid in an


unopened pitcher tastes like mineral water and has been used to cure stomach upsets and eye problems.


Why are they


A big appetite Moths, rats and


even small birds have been found trapped in the pitchers of monkey cups!


54 called monkey cups?


Because monkeys in the jungle have been seen drinking the liquid from these plants.


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