Highland Cloud Forest & Beyond on Highland Cloud Forest · Gabriele Zoppoli

Collection Dendrogram

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

A radial phylogenetic dendrogram of the entire collection, clade → order → family → genus → species. Each leaf carries source, status, and (where photographed) a slideshow that unfolds on hover. The tree is built offline and published here as a self-contained artifact; drag to pan, scroll to zoom, click anywhere to focus, Esc to clear.

Built around D3.js. Dataset is generated from the master Excel inventory and watermarked with CC BY-SA 4.0 on every photograph.

Self-watering Zeer Pot for Darlingtonia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Darlingtonia californica — the California Pitcher Plant — needs cold roots while tolerating warm air. In its native habitat, underground springs keep the rhizome below ~18 °C even when air above hits 30 °C. The standard hobbyist solution is a daily flush of cold water or ice cubes in summer, both of which fail quietly on the day you forget.

A Zeer pot (pot-in-pot evaporative cooler) solves the same physics problem the plant already does: water evaporating from an unglazed outer surface pulls heat out of the inner chamber. With a self-topping water reservoir, a pair of thermistors, a capacitive soil probe, and an ESP32-C3 SuperMini pulling it all together, the whole assembly runs unattended for a month at a time.

Tillandsia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Two lists, one urgent. The Hromadnik order is the priority — Lieselotte Hromadnik is elderly, ships from her home in Kritzendorf, and carries type lineages and namesake species that nobody else does. PlantaBrutt is commercial and will be around longer, so its list is where oddball size/form variants live.

Hromadnik — priority order (€98)

Seller: Lieselotte Hromadnik · Hauptstraße 37a, A-3420 Kritzendorf, Austria Contact: Lieselotte.Hromadnik@tillandsia.at Stock list: tillandsia.at (updated 2026-01-02)

Mexican Pinguicula

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Seven Mexican butterworts across two vendors, chosen for what the current collection lacks: yellow flowers, dark violet flowers, veined violets, and three morphological oddities. Prioritized by flower color uniqueness over species completionism.

Heldros (€49)

Species	€	Rationale
P. BCP Golden Eye	12	Yellow flowers — unique in Mexican Pinguicula
P. cyclosecta	8	Dark violet — replaces the lost #351
P. emarginata form A	8	Veined violet flowers
P. debbertiana	10	Violet-pink miniature; check for ‘Metallic Purple’ stalk restocks
P. gypsicola BG Bonn	11	Alien thread-like rosette; notoriously harder to grow

Diflora (€26)

Species	€	Rationale
P. moctezumae	10	Largest flowers in the genus
P. medusina	16	Tentacle rosette, curling leaf tips; replaces the lost #186

Total: ~€75 + two shippings.

Phalaenopsis sections Aphyllae & Parishianae

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Deciduous and semi-deciduous miniature Phalaenopsis from the Himalayan foothills to northern Borneo. Sections Aphyllae (cold-tolerant, fully leafless in winter) and Parishianae (semi-deciduous SE Asian) are sometimes merged in modern treatments; I keep them separate because cultural requirements differ.

Already in the collection

Section Aphyllae s.s.: P. wilsonii (alive); P. braceana (lost)
Section Parishianae: P. finleyi, P. gibbosa, P. lowii, P. parishii — all alive
Just arrived (April 2026): P. stobartiana from Claessen Orchids — €32.65 plant + cold-pack shipping = €62 total

Currlin — priority order

Vendor: Currlin Orchideen (Germany) — currlin.com/en Plants total: €32–48 + shipping

Opening notes

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the first post on the blog tab. It exists mostly to unlock the pattern — once one post is published, the listing page and the RSS feed spring to life, and the next post costs me a few minutes of markdown.

What shows up here

Short notes, mostly. Three rough categories:

Build logs — the terrarium hardware keeps evolving (a new sensor, a control loop tuned, a pump replaced). Worth recording the small changes, because after five failures I forget which.
Species observations — when a specific plant does something worth writing about: an H. macdonaldae that decides, after three years of refusing, to flower on a Tuesday in August; a D. cuthbertsonii that turns pink in November; roots changing colour from doro-ne to rubii-ne on an Akausagi.
The odd essay — where the day job and the plants overlap. Oncology has taught me a lot about how to keep delicate living things alive in hostile environments; the plants, in return, have taught me patience at the bedside. Both deserve writing about.

Photos in posts

Posts live as page bundles — a folder with an index.md and any photos dropped in alongside. You reference them with plain markdown, no paths, no fiddling:

Cattleya, Sophronitis & Laelia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

The former genera Sophronitis and Laelia (now subsumed into Cattleya sensu lato) comprise miniature rupicolous (rock-dwelling) orchids from the highlands of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, particularly the campos rupestres at 800–2,000 m. They are prized for their vivid red, orange, and yellow flowers on compact plants rarely exceeding 5 cm.

Position in Terrarium

Upper to middle zone – moderate to high light. In nature these grow on exposed rock faces or as epiphytes on the windward side of stunted trees.

Dendrobium

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Dendrobium section Oxyglossum includes some of the most spectacular highland orchids in cultivation. Native to the mossy forests of Papua New Guinea at 2,000–3,000 m elevation, they produce clusters of brilliant blue-purple flowers – a color rare in orchids and almost unique to this section.

These plants represent a remarkable case of convergent evolution: they evolved independently from Andean cloud forest orchids like Dracula and Masdevallia, yet require nearly identical environmental conditions.

Dionaea

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Dionaea muscipula (Venus flytrap) cultivars are grown outdoors in Genoa, Italy with full sun and winter dormancy. The collection focuses on unusual cultivars with distinctive trap morphologies and colorations.

Collection

42 acquired · 39 alive · 3 lost · ~€330 invested · 2 photographed

Taxon	Source	Price	Acquired	Status	Notes
Dionaea muscipula 'Bimbo'	Paolo Mattevi	See notes	May 2020	lost	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Jaw Smiley x Big DM'	Paolo Mattevi	See notes	May 2020	lost	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Kim Jong Un'	Paolo Mattevi	€25	2020	lost	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Akai Ryu'	Carnivoria.eu	€8	Mar 2016	alive	4-6cm
Dionaea muscipula 'Alien'	Carnivoria.eu	€40	Mar 2016	alive	8-10cm
Dionaea muscipula 'All Red Giant Form'	Carnivoria.eu	€10	Mar 2016	alive	6-8cm
Dionaea muscipula 'B52'	Carnivoria.eu	€20	Mar 2016	alive	8-12cm
Dionaea muscipula 'BCP Clone H25'	Paolo Mattevi			alive
Dionaea muscipula 'Black Star'	Paolo Mattevi	€18	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Charlie Mandon Spotted'	Paolo Mattevi			alive
Dionaea muscipula 'Clayton Volcanic Red'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order (13 items)
Dionaea muscipula 'Coquillage'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Apr 2016	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Crocodile'	Carnivoria.eu	€20	Mar 2016	alive	6-8cm
Dionaea muscipula 'DC XL'	Diflora	See notes	Apr 2019	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Dracula'	Carnivoria.eu	€50	Mar 2016	alive	6-8cm
Dionaea muscipula 'Feather Tooth'	Paolo Mattevi	€9	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Freaky Star'	Andrea Fontana	See notes	Apr 2019	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Funnel Trap'	Alessandro Ferri	See notes	2016	alive
Dionaea muscipula 'Fused Teeth'	Andrea Fontana	See notes	Jan 2017	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'G5 Hellcat'	Paolo Mattevi	€40	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Galaxy'	Paolo Mattevi	€9	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'GJ Giant Cudo'	Paolo Mattevi	See notes	May 2020	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Gold Strike'	Carnivoria.eu	€15	Mar 2016	alive	4-6cm
Dionaea muscipula 'Great Line'	Carnivoria.eu	€12	Mar 2016	alive	5-8cm
Dionaea muscipula 'H25 BCP'	Paolo Mattevi	€7	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'La Grosse à GuiGui'	Klein Carnivors	€20	Feb 2017	alive	Bily's giant form; invoice #1911
Dionaea muscipula 'Long Snapper'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Miss Pimbeche'	Paolo Mattevi	€10	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Miss Pimbèche'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Periscope'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Petite Dragon'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Feb 2017	alive	From growlist; not itemized on invoice #1911 (possible bonus/extra)
Dionaea muscipula 'Phalanx'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Pluto'	Paolo Mattevi	€6	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'SD Kronos'	Luca Gambini	See notes	Mar 2020	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Spider'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Apr 2016	alive	From growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Trevis Red Dentate'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Triton'	Paolo Mattevi	€6	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Werewolf'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Part of 150€ order
Dionaea muscipula 'Whip Long Lash'	Diflora	See notes	2019	alive	Alveolo; part of 150€ order; name corrected from 'WIP' via growlist
Dionaea muscipula 'Yellow Orange'	Paolo Mattevi	€5	2020	alive	Part of 225€ order
Dionaea muscipula "Pom Pom"	friend			alive
Dionaea muscipula da seme (seedling)				alive

Vendors

Carnivoria.eu (Germany/Czech Republic)
Paolo Mattevi (Italy) – major source for cultivars
Klein Carnivors (South Africa)
Diflora (Italy)
Andrea Fontana (Italy)
Alessandro Ferri / Luca Gambini (Italy)

Photos

3 taxa photographed in Dionaea. Click a tile to view full-size; every image is CC BY-SA 4.0.

Dracula & Masdevallia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Dracula and Masdevallia orchids inhabit the mossy cloud forests of the Colombian and Ecuadorian Andes at 1,500–2,500 m elevation. Dracula’s bizarre, often face-like flowers hang downward from pendulous inflorescences that emerge from below the mount – a strategy for pollination by fungus gnats attracted to the mushroom-like lip.

Position in Terrarium

Lower zone – shade, lowest light intensity. In nature these grow in deep forest understory where light is heavily filtered. The terrarium’s light gradient provides the necessary shade without artificial screening.

Drosera regia Setup

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Drosera regia — the King Sundew — is the giant of the genus, with leaves reaching 60 cm in mature plants. Endemic to a small area of the Bain’s Kloof valley in the Western Cape of South Africa, it tolerates Mediterranean-type conditions but with specific requirements that don’t mesh well with the highland tropical regime.

Why a separate setup?

D. regia is at its best with:

Cool nights (8–15 °C) and moderately warm days (20–28 °C) — Mediterranean rather than tropical
Strong, direct light
A pronounced winter dormancy period — incompatible with the no-dry-rest highland terrarium policy
Mineral-poor, peat-based substrate kept on the drier side compared to typical Drosera

Status

Currently building. Setup details, substrate recipe, and growth progression will be added.

Easier Maintenance Environments

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Not every plant needs a 1.5 m climate-controlled cabinet. Several species in the collection live in simpler containers tuned to require minimal daily intervention.

Setups

To be documented. Likely candidates include:

Sealed jars with sphagnum and small carnivores or epiphytes
Outdoor Sarracenia / Dionaea / temperate Drosera bog tray
Windowsill Tillandsia and other dry-tolerant epiphytes
Unheated cool-grow boxes for hardy orchids

Each setup will get its own subsection with: target species, substrate, watering interval, light source, observed survival.

Heliamphora

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Heliamphora (sun pitchers) are carnivorous pitcher plants endemic to the tepui summits of the Venezuelan and Guyana Highlands. They grow fully exposed on nutrient-poor sandstone substrates at 1,800–2,800 m elevation, where persistent cloud immersion provides both moisture and prey (small insects trapped in pitcher fluid).

Position in Terrarium

Upper zone – high light, directly under the LED array. The inverse square law light gradient places them in the brightest position, approximating their fully exposed natural habitat.

InfluxDB Measurement Schema

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Database: highland Default Retention Policy: standard_highland_retention (365 days) Write Interval: 60 seconds (Data Logger), varies for other sources

Retention Policies

Policy	Duration	Default
`autogen`	infinite	No
`one_year_policy`	365 days	No
`standard_highland_retention`	365 days	Yes

Measurements

Core Terrarium Measurements (Data Logger — 60s interval)

These 16 measurements are written by the centralized Data Logger function node on the Utilities tab, reading from Node-RED global context.

Nepenthes (Highland)

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Highland Nepenthes are tropical pitcher plants from the upper montane forests of Borneo, Sumatra, the Philippines, and Sulawesi, typically 1,500–3,000 m elevation. Unlike their lowland relatives (which require sustained heat), highland species thrive in the same cool, humid conditions as tepui and Andean cloud forest plants.

Position in Terrarium

Lower to middle zone – moderate shade, coolest air (cold air sinks from the evaporator above). The scrambling/climbing habit means they can explore vertically, but roots stay in the cooler zone.

Node-RED Flows Guide

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

flows-sanitized.json contains the complete Node-RED control logic for the highland cloud forest terrarium, organized across 7 flow tabs. Credentials have been replaced with placeholders.

Before Importing

1. Install Node-RED

bash <(curl -sL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/node-red/linux-installers/master/deb/update-nodejs-and-nodered)
sudo systemctl enable nodered
sudo systemctl start nodered

2. Install Required Node Packages

All packages must be installed in your Node-RED user directory (~/.node-red/):

cd ~/.node-red

npm install \
 node-red-contrib-bigtimer \
 node-red-node-openweathermap \
 node-red-contrib-influxdb \
 node-red-node-smooth \
 node-red-contrib-python-function-ps \
 node-red-contrib-dynamic-dimmer \
 node-red-contrib-sun-position \
 node-red-node-rbe \
 node-red-contrib-stoptimer-varidelay \
 node-red-contrib-aggregator \
 node-red-contrib-hysteresis \
 node-red-contrib-ui-led \
 node-red-contrib-ui-statetrail \
 node-red-dashboard \
 node-red-node-serialport

Note: node-red-contrib-ioplugin is no longer required (Firmata protocol was replaced by custom serial).

Other Genera

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Utricularia sect. Orchidioides (Terrarium)

Epiphytic bladderworts from tepui cliff faces and Neotropical cloud forest canopies, cultivated kokedama-style in the terrarium’s middle zone. Only the epiphytic species sit in the terrarium; terrestrial Utricularia are grown elsewhere.

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	U. x nelumbifolia x reniformis	Klein Carnivors	EUR 12.00	Sect. Orchidioides hybrid	Alive
2	U. alpina	Gartenbau Carow	—	Sect. Orchidioides; tepui endemic	Lost
3	U. quelchii	—	—	Sect. Orchidioides; tepui endemic	Lost
4	U. campbelliana	—	—	Sect. Orchidioides	Lost

Three of four sect. Orchidioides species were lost – the most significant cultivation failure in the collection. Only the U. nelumbifolia x reniformis hybrid survives.

Other Orchids

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Neofinetia & Allies (Japanese Wind Orchids)

Miniature vandaceous orchids prized for their fragrance and elegant form.

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	Neofinetia falcata ‘Benitengu’	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 55.00	—	Alive
2	N. falcata ‘Akausagi’ (red rabbit)	Negie Orchids, Japan	EUR 761.04	Near blooming size with many babies; CITES + phytosanitary + EMS from Japan	Alive
3	N. falcata	Grossraschener Orchideen	—	—	Alive
4	Neostylis Lou Sneary	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 27.27	N. falcata x Rhynchostylis coelestis var. coerulea	Alive
5	Darwinara Charm ‘Blue Moon’	Claessen Orchids & Plants	EUR 54.04	—	Alive
6	Darwinara Charm ‘Blue Star’	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 35.00	—	Lost

Holcoglossum (4 acquired, 3 alive, 1 lost)

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	H. flavescens	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 22.72	—	Alive
2	H. tsii	Orchids & more	EUR 14.00	—	Alive
3	H. amesianum	Claessen Orchids & Plants	EUR 17.95	9 cm	Alive
4	H. quasispinifolium	Nardotto e Capello	—	—	Lost

Vanda (Miniature) (4 acquired, 2 alive, 2 lost)

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	V. coerulescens	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 55.00	Miniature species	Alive
2	V. nana	Claessen Orchids & Plants	EUR 19.95	—	Alive
3	V. coerulescens	Currlin Orchideen	EUR 13.08	Second plant	Lost
4	V. ‘Chocolate Brown’	Growlist	—	—	Lost

Miniature Phalaenopsis (6 acquired, 5 alive, 1 lost)

Species-form Phalaenopsis – all miniatures, very different from commercial hybrids.

Other Plants

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Darlingtonia (4 acquired, 0 alive — all lost)

Darlingtonia californica (cobra lily) has proven extremely difficult in Genoa’s Mediterranean climate. Four plants from different sources were all lost.

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Status
1	D. californica	Giardino Carnivoro	EUR 18.00	Lost
2	D. californica	Gartenbau Carow	EUR 32.00	Lost
3	D. californica	Klein Carnivors	EUR 16.00	Lost
4	D. californica	Andrea Fontana	—	Lost

Aquatic Plants

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Status
1	Nymphaea pygmaea ‘Helvola’	Vivai le Georgiche	EUR 33.00	Alive
2	N. ‘Indiana’	Arborea Farm	EUR 16.00	Alive
3	N. ‘Perry’s Baby Red’	Eta Beta Vivaio	EUR 18.00	Alive
4	N. ‘Perry’s Baby Red’	Water Plants Italy	EUR 18.00	Lost
5	N. x ‘Snow Princess’	Growlist	—	Lost
6	Iris versicolor	Water Plants Italy	EUR 4.50	Alive
7	I. louisiana ‘Bout Midnight’	Growlist	—	Alive
8	Azolla filiculoides	Eta Beta Vivaio	EUR 4.00	Alive
9	Salvinia auriculata	Water Plants Italy	EUR 3.50	Alive
10	Eleocharis acicularis	Growlist	—	Alive
11	Cyperus papyrus	—	—	Alive

Other Orchids (not in terrarium)

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	Paphiopedilum delenatii vinicolor	Growlist	—	—	Alive
2	P. micranthum x self	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 25.00	—	Lost
3	P. sanderianum	Growlist	—	—	Lost
4	Cymbidium Kiwi Midnight ‘Geyserland’	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 60.00	—	Given away
5	Fredclarkeara After Dark	Celandroni Orchidee	EUR 60.00	—	Lost
6	Coelogyne schilleriana	Currlin Orchideen	EUR 18.22	—	Lost
7	Dendrobium speciosum	Growlist	—	Too large for terrarium	Alive
8	D. loddigesii	Growlist	—	Intermediate conditions	Alive
9	D. ‘Berry Oda’	Re di Fiori Vivai	—	Hybrid	Alive

Hardy/Terrestrial Orchids

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	Calopogon tuberosus	Gartenbau Carow	EUR 38.80	—	Alive
2	Habenaria radiata	Growlist	—	—	Alive
3	Pogonia ophioglossoides	eBay (westcornwallcarnivores)	EUR 5.80	—	Alive
4	Spiranthes cernua var. odorata ‘Chadds Ford’	Gartenbau Carow	—	Water orchid	Alive

Ferns

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	Platycerium bifurcatum	Growlist	—	Staghorn fern	Alive
2	P. veitchii	Growlist	—	—	Alive
3	Davallia repens	Klein Carnivors	EUR 12.00	—	Lost
4	D. fejeensis	Growlist	—	—	Lost
5	Lecanopteris lomarioides	Klein Carnivors	EUR 35.00	Ant fern	Lost
6	Pyrrosia nummularifolia	Growlist	—	—	Lost

Miscellaneous

#	Taxon	Vendor	Price	Notes	Status
1	Picea pungens ‘Glauca Globosa’	Vivai le Georgiche	EUR 55.00	Dwarf blue spruce	Alive
2	Rosa ‘Sorbet Fruite’	Meilland (Yacht & Garden, Genoa)	—	—	Alive
3	Byblis gigantea	eBay (killerblume)	EUR 6.99	—	Lost
4	B. liniflora ‘Kingston Rest’	eBay (killerblume)	EUR 6.99	—	Lost
5	Catopsis berteroniana	Araflora	—	Carnivorous bromeliad	Lost
6	Drosophyllum lusitanicum	Rita Corino	—	—	Lost
7	Roridula gorgonias	Gartenbau Carow	EUR 48.80	—	Lost

Photos

4 taxa photographed in Sarracenia. Click a tile to view full-size; every image is CC BY-SA 4.0.

PID Controller

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

The terrarium uses a discrete PID (Proportional-Integral-Derivative) controller with gain scheduling to modulate fan speed based on the difference between target and actual humidity. This provides smooth, responsive control compared to simpler on/off (bang-bang) approaches, while gain scheduling prevents oscillation near the setpoint.

Error Convention

humidity_diff = target_humidity − current_humidity (from Humidity tab)
error = −humidity_diff = current_humidity − target_humidity

Positive error (current > target = too humid) → increase fan speed
Negative error (current < target = too dry) → decrease fan speed (let mister handle it)

PID Equation

The controller output at each time step is:

Sarracenia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Sarracenia (North American pitcher plants) are grown outdoors year-round in Genoa, Italy. These temperate carnivorous plants require winter dormancy and full sun, making them incompatible with the cloud forest terrarium.

Collection

42 acquired · 26 alive · 7 lost · 9 given · ~€872 invested · 3 photographed

	Taxon	Source	Price	Acquired	Status	Notes
	Sarracenia 'Juthatip Soper'	Novaflora	€28.8	Nov 2016	given
	Sarracenia 'Scarlet Belle'	Nature et Paysages	€16	Jan 2017	given
	Sarracenia × 'Snow White'	Angelo Ossino	See notes	2017	given	H02AO
	Sarracenia × catesbaei	Marco Oliosi	See notes	Nov 2016	given	From growlist
	Sarracenia × courtii	Karnivores.com	See notes	Jan 2016	given	From growlist
	Sarracenia × moorei 'Brook's Hybrid'	Luca Cappon	See notes	Nov 2019	given	H7MK; from growlist
	Sarracenia alata 'Red Lid' × flava H17 MK	Alessandro Ferri	See notes	2016	given	Striking red inner lids
	Sarracenia alata var. nigropurpurea	Angelo Ossino	See notes	2017	given	CK. A15AO
	Sarracenia flava var. rubricorpora 'Burgundy'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Mar 2016	given	MK F 26; prices in PDF invoice; also acquired from Tavecchio Oct 2017
	Sarracenia flava var. rubricorpora 'Burgundy'	Davide Tavecchio	See notes	Oct 2017	lost	F26MK; also from Klein Mar 2016; from growlist
	Sarracenia leucophylla (Titan × Self)	Angelo Ossino	See notes	2017	lost	Plantev 2009; L11AO
	Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis 'Watchtower'	Klein Carnivors	€38	Jan 2020	lost	SMI_19; invoice #3559
	Sarracenia psittacina var. okefenokeensis Clone 1	Klein Carnivors	€28	Feb 2017	lost	MK 1211; invoice #1911
	Sarracenia purpurea ssp. purpurea	Klein Carnivors	€15	Feb 2017	lost	×2 plants (€30 total); invoice #1911
	Sarracenia purpurea ssp. purpurea 'Veinless Plant'	Klein Carnivors	€28	Feb 2017	lost	Invoice #1911
	Sarracenia purpurea ssp. venosa (Reedy Creek, Caroline Co.)	Klein Carnivors	€16	Feb 2017	lost	MK 2029; invoice #1911
	Sarracenia 'Hurricane Creek White' clone F	Luca Gambini	€159		alive
	Sarracenia 'Judith Hindle'	Nature et Paysages	€18	Jan 2017	alive
	Sarracenia 'Kimber Red Ruffles'	Luca Cappon	See notes	Nov 2019	alive	Vendor corrected via growlist (was listed as Unknown)
	Sarracenia 'Orange Sunset'	Luca Cappon	See notes	Nov 2019	alive	Vendor corrected via growlist (was listed as Unknown)
	Sarracenia 'Waccamaw'	eBay (secret_garden_carnivores)	€90	Jan 2026	alive	Rare; +€5 shipping
	Sarracenia 'Wilkerson's White Knight'	Davide Tavecchio	€90	2016	alive
	Sarracenia × 'Glider'	Luca Cappon	See notes	Nov 2019	alive	HF04; from growlist
	Sarracenia × 'Llama'	Roberto Restelli	See notes	Nov 2019	alive	From growlist
	Sarracenia × alata 'Night' × leucophylla × alata Night	Klein Carnivors	€16	Jan 2020	alive	SHY_37; invoice #3559
	Sarracenia × alata AF				alive	⚠️ Incrocio illeggibile
+4	Sarracenia × moorei 'Leah Wilkerson'	FreakyPlants (Marco)	€38	2017	alive	Corrected: was listed as Dionaea; actually Sarracenia × moorei per growlist
	Sarracenia × Saurus	eBay (semiraridalmondo)	€150	Jan 2026	alive	L size rhizome; +€4.90 shipping
	Sarracenia alata 'Black tubes, pubescent form'	Carnivoria.eu	€30	Mar 2016	alive	45-60cm; adult
	Sarracenia areolata L28MK × A28MK				alive
	Sarracenia cv. 'Leviathan'	Hewitt-Cooper Carnivorous Plants	€53.1	Feb 2020	alive	Originally £45.00 GBP (Feb 2020 rate ~1.18); ≈€81.51 EUR total incl. shipping
	Sarracenia flava var. flava 'Dahlia Bog'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Mar 2016	alive	MK F 05; from growlist
+7	Sarracenia flava var. flava 'Goldie'	Luca Cappon	See notes	Feb 2019	alive	From growlist
	Sarracenia flava var. ornata 'Filiformis' (FO6)	Stefano Polleschi	See notes	2019	alive	Aberrant form ex Valentina 'Altair' Bordin; very thin spring pitchers, vertical lid; unregistered cultivar; part of 33€ order
	Sarracenia flava var. ornata FO6 "Filiformis" (V. Bordin), aberrant form	unknown			alive
	Sarracenia flava var. rubricorpora 'Giant Red Tube'	Davide Tavecchio	See notes	Oct 2017	alive	F112MK; from growlist
	Sarracenia leucophylla 'Big Bulbous Pink Pitchers'				alive
	Sarracenia leucophylla 'Helmut's Delight'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Mar 2016	alive	40-50cm large plants; prices in PDF invoice
	Sarracenia leucophylla 'Large Pink Lip'	Klein Carnivors	See notes	Mar 2016	alive	Apalachicola, FL, Liberty Co, MK L 18
	Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis 'Reading University Clone'	Klein Carnivors	€24	Feb 2017	alive	MK 2201; invoice #1911
	Sarracenia minor var. okefenokeensis 'Red Eyes'	Klein Carnivors	€18	Jan 2020	alive	SMI_23; invoice #3559
	Sarracenia purpurea ssp. venosa var. pallidiflora	Klein Carnivors	€16	Feb 2017	alive	MK 1003; invoice #1911

Vendors

Klein Carnivors (South Africa) – wide selection, quality plants
Luca Cappon (Italy) – Italian grower, trades and sales
Paolo Mattevi / Davide Tavecchio / Luca Gambini (Italy) – Italian CP community
Carnivoria.eu (Germany/Czech Republic)
Hewitt-Cooper Carnivorous Plants (UK)

Photos

4 taxa photographed in Sarracenia. Click a tile to view full-size; every image is CC BY-SA 4.0.

System Architecture

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Hardware Overview

Raspberry Pi (Control Hub)

The Raspberry Pi runs all software services and serves as the central controller:

OS: Debian-based Linux (kernel 6.1.0, ARMv8)
Services: Node-RED, InfluxDB, Grafana, Mosquitto MQTT broker, arduino-watchdog
Network: Ethernet/WiFi for weather API access and remote monitoring

Arduino Mega 2560 (GPIO Interface)

Connected via USB serial (/dev/ttyACM0) at 115200 baud, running a custom text-based protocol (see arduino-terrarium.ino). The protocol replaced StandardFirmata in February 2026 for improved reliability and debuggability.

Tillandsia

gabriele.zoppoli@unige.it (Gabriele Zoppoli) — Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Tillandsia (air plants) are grown on windowsills and indoors in Genoa, Italy. These epiphytic bromeliads require good air circulation and periodic misting but no soil. The collection spans 53 living species and cultivars from across the Americas.

Collection

58 acquired · 55 alive · 3 lost · ~€317 invested

Taxon	Source	Price	Acquired	Status	Notes
Tillandsia funckiana	Dötterer Pflanzen	€6.07	Feb 2020	lost	Mounted on cork; Pulk auf Kork (Dötterer)
Tillandsia kammii	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.41	Feb 2020	lost	Mounted on cork; Pulk auf Kork
Tillandsia xerographica	Michieli Floricoltura	€45.9	Nov 2021	lost	XL size; Size XL
Tillandsia 'Curly Slim'	Dötterer Pflanzen	€17.14	May 2021	alive	Extra-large; Size XL
Tillandsia 'Houston Cotton Candy'	Dötterer Pflanzen	€10.47	Sep 2020	alive	Giant form; Gigant form
Tillandsia aeranthos				alive	Esemplari grandi
Tillandsia albertiana	Dötterer Pflanzen	€6.54	Feb 2020	alive	Mounted on cork; Pulk auf Kork (Dötterer)
Tillandsia araujei				alive
Tillandsia arizae-juliae	Dötterer Pflanzen	€3.74	May 2021	alive
Tillandsia bandensis	Unknown			alive	Identified Apr 2026 from photos
Tillandsia bartramii	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.57	Sep 2020	alive	On cork, with seed capsules; With seed pods
Tillandsia bartramii	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.57	May 2021	alive	Large wire ball; Wireball, size L
Tillandsia bergeri	Unknown			alive	Large clump
Tillandsia burle-marxii				alive
Tillandsia cacticola	Dötterer Pflanzen	€9.35	Feb 2020	alive
Tillandsia caerulea	Dötterer Pflanzen	€9.35	Feb 2020	alive	On wire; Clump
Tillandsia capitata var. yellow	Dötterer Pflanzen	€16.82	Feb 2020	alive
Tillandsia caput-medusae	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia chaetophylla	Dötterer Pflanzen	€14.29	May 2021	alive	Clump; Pulk
Tillandsia chusgonensis	Dötterer Pflanzen	€11.21	Feb 2020	alive	Clump; Pulk
Tillandsia crocata				alive	Fiori gialli profumati
Tillandsia duratii	Dötterer Pflanzen	€18.69	Sep 2020	alive	On wire
Tillandsia fuchsii var. fuchsii	Unknown			alive	Identified Apr 2026; has flowered; in collection since at least 2022
Tillandsia funckiana				alive
Tillandsia gilliesii var. gilliesii				alive
Tillandsia glabrior				alive
Tillandsia harrisii	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia heteromorpha	Dötterer Pflanzen	€5.61	Sep 2020	alive	Clump; Pulk
Tillandsia hirta f. minor				alive
Tillandsia ionantha	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia ionantha 'Fuego'	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia kautskyi				alive	Miniatura brasiliana, ex-CITES
Tillandsia landbeckii				alive	P12
Tillandsia loliacea	Dötterer Pflanzen	€6.54	Feb 2020	alive	Small clump; Pulk small
Tillandsia magnusiana	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia paleacea	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia pohliana	Dötterer Pflanzen	€3.81	Sep 2020	alive	+1 gratis (free bonus); Size LARGE
Tillandsia pruinosa	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.88	May 2021	alive	On wire; Clump
Tillandsia pueblensis				alive
Tillandsia rectifolia	Dötterer Pflanzen	€11.21	Feb 2020	alive	Mounted on cork; auf Kork
Tillandsia recurvata	Dötterer Pflanzen	€6.54	May 2021	alive	Clump; Pulk
Tillandsia reitenbachii				alive
Tillandsia santiagoensis f. adpressa				alive	H.Hrom. & L.Hrom. 2020; Bolivia, Serrania de Santiago
Tillandsia schiedeana var. major	Dötterer Pflanzen	€9.35	Feb 2020	alive	Wire ball form; Wireball
Tillandsia seleriana				alive
Tillandsia setiformis	Dötterer Pflanzen	€9.35	Feb 2020	alive	Mounted on cork; Pulk auf Kork
Tillandsia sphaerocephala	Dötterer Pflanzen	€4.49	May 2021	alive
Tillandsia stellifera	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.41	Feb 2020	alive
Tillandsia stelliflora				alive
Tillandsia straminea	Unknown			alive
Tillandsia streptocarpa	Dötterer Pflanzen	€8.41	Feb 2020	alive	Large, on wire; Size L
Tillandsia streptophylla	Unknown			alive	In flower
Tillandsia tectorum	Unknown			alive	Tag lost; form unknown
Tillandsia tectorum 'Snow'	Dötterer Pflanzen	€14.95	Sep 2020	alive	Extra-large; Size XL
Tillandsia tenuifolia				alive
Tillandsia tricholepis				alive	Subgen. Diaphoranthema
Tillandsia usneoides 'Silber Grob'	Dötterer Pflanzen	€13.08	Sep 2020	alive	Silver, coarse form, large; Size LARGE
Tillandsia vicentina	Michieli Floricoltura	€11.59	Nov 2021	alive

Photos

No photos logged yet for Tillandsia.

Highland Cloud Forest & Beyond on Highland Cloud Forest · Gabriele Zoppoli

Collection Dendrogram

Self-watering Zeer Pot for Darlingtonia

Tillandsia

# Hromadnik — priority order (€98)

Mexican Pinguicula

# Heldros (€49)

# Diflora (€26)

Phalaenopsis sections Aphyllae & Parishianae

# Already in the collection

# Currlin — priority order

Opening notes

# What shows up here

# Photos in posts

Cattleya, Sophronitis & Laelia

# Overview

# Position in Terrarium

Dendrobium

# Overview

Dionaea

# Overview

# Collection

# Vendors

# Photos

Dracula & Masdevallia

# Overview

# Position in Terrarium

Drosera regia Setup

# Why a separate setup?

# Status

Easier Maintenance Environments

# Setups

Heliamphora

# Overview

# Position in Terrarium

InfluxDB Measurement Schema

# Retention Policies

# Measurements

# Core Terrarium Measurements (Data Logger — 60s interval)

Nepenthes (Highland)

# Overview

# Position in Terrarium

Node-RED Flows Guide

# Overview

# Before Importing

# 1. Install Node-RED

# 2. Install Required Node Packages

Other Genera

# Utricularia sect. Orchidioides (Terrarium)

Other Orchids

# Neofinetia & Allies (Japanese Wind Orchids)

# Holcoglossum (4 acquired, 3 alive, 1 lost)

# Vanda (Miniature) (4 acquired, 2 alive, 2 lost)

# Miniature Phalaenopsis (6 acquired, 5 alive, 1 lost)

Other Plants

# Darlingtonia (4 acquired, 0 alive — all lost)

# Aquatic Plants

# Other Orchids (not in terrarium)

# Hardy/Terrestrial Orchids

# Ferns

# Miscellaneous

# Photos

PID Controller

# Overview

# Error Convention

# PID Equation

Sarracenia

# Overview

# Collection

# Vendors

# Photos

System Architecture

# Hardware Overview

# Raspberry Pi (Control Hub)

# Arduino Mega 2560 (GPIO Interface)

Tillandsia

# Overview

# Collection

# Photos

Hromadnik — priority order (€98)

Heldros (€49)

Diflora (€26)

Already in the collection

Currlin — priority order

What shows up here

Photos in posts

Overview

Position in Terrarium

Overview

Overview

Collection

Vendors

Photos

Overview

Position in Terrarium

Why a separate setup?

Status

Setups

Overview

Position in Terrarium

Retention Policies

Measurements

Core Terrarium Measurements (Data Logger — 60s interval)

Overview

Position in Terrarium

Overview

Before Importing

1. Install Node-RED

2. Install Required Node Packages

Utricularia sect. Orchidioides (Terrarium)

Neofinetia & Allies (Japanese Wind Orchids)

Holcoglossum (4 acquired, 3 alive, 1 lost)

Vanda (Miniature) (4 acquired, 2 alive, 2 lost)

Miniature Phalaenopsis (6 acquired, 5 alive, 1 lost)

Darlingtonia (4 acquired, 0 alive — all lost)

Aquatic Plants

Other Orchids (not in terrarium)

Hardy/Terrestrial Orchids

Ferns

Miscellaneous

Photos

Overview

Error Convention

PID Equation

Overview

Collection

Vendors

Photos

Hardware Overview

Raspberry Pi (Control Hub)

Arduino Mega 2560 (GPIO Interface)

Overview

Collection

Photos