Hidden in the depths of the lush and rolling hills of the famous Sri Lankan tea plantations is a plant nursery unknown to many. This nursery grows one of the most majestic and outlandish plants and is also the largest producer of them. The plant I am talking about is the almighty Nepenthes, a type of carnivorous plant that catches insects in its bottomless pit of doom. 

During our trip in Sri Lanka, we had the wonderful opportunity to tour this nursery, also known as Borneo Exotics. This place was home to thousands of hybrid species, i.e. two real species of Nepenthes bred to make a new type. They even won four times at the Chelsea Flower Show getting full marks with their award-winning plants! Barely three or so people visit this nursery every year, partly because it’s in the middle of nowhere, but also because they are careful who to let in. Somehow we were, and after our scenic drive through the vividly green tea mountains, we arrived.

After over 25 years of being here, the nursery has become quite large even having a proper scientific laboratory. The owner, Rob Cantley, and his wife both live here and over the course of a couple of decades transformed a boring hill face into a flourishing garden full of colorful plants and other flora. After introducing ourselves we stedily hiked down a dirt path to the first nursery, presumably the largest there. As soon as we stepped in through the two sealed doors, hundreds of Nepenthes – all with unique yet gorgeous patterns and shapes – engulfed us making me think we were in a different world of some kind. I was too overwhelmed to speak as there were so many of them, each as exotic as the others next to them. 

For those who don’t know what Nepenthes are, they’re basically plants with stomachs at the bottom of their pitcher-shaped body that dissolve their unfortunate victims (who fell into the plant’s trap) to get the animal’s (most likely an insect of some kind) nutrients-rich nitrogen. As the soil on which the Nepenthes grow is incredibly infertile, they’ve adapted to get their nutrients from other organisms, a.k.a. insects! Some Nepenthes have even evolved to catch tree-shrew poo! 

After a couple of hours, we ended up exploring several nurseries and even went inside a professional laboratory! There were mostly hybrid species, but some were native including my favorite, the Nepenthes Lowii, or the shrew toilet. Some Nepenthes had massive peristomes, which are essentially hooked teeth surrounding the lip/rim of the plant – one even taking 25 years to grow -, while others were slimmer and more delicate. Even though you may not believe it, one of the most fascinating things about these plants is that the pitcher is just a reformed leaf! Every nursery had its own unique Nepenthes ranging from low land to high land species, meaning the temperatures and conditions in the greenhouses were also different from each other. 

It was finally time to go inside the laboratory, and after thoroughly cleaning ourselves and wearing lab coats, we entered the facility. There were two floors, the first holding a dozen or so machinery equipped with surgical utensils for dissecting plants. The second floor held all of the plant specimens – thousands of developing Nepenthes and some other plants stored in glass capsules lined in rows and rows of shelves…exactly what I’d picture a laboratory to look like. If you’re wondering how they get so many of these plants, a method called tissue culture is used which is essentially dissecting a plant into a few parts and growing each part up until you can start the process again – infinite plants!

Although the main purpose of this nursery is to export Nepenthes seedlings to international nurseries globally, there is also a local intent, specifically for the employees who work in this nursery. Most locals living in this region of Sri Lanka almost always become tea farmers or teachers as there is no other choice, but this nursery is giving them a better job opportunity – especially the women who are better with precise surgical movements. As the nursery continues to expand particularly with employee numbers, the main purpose is also shifting towards helping the local community which is quite inspiring especially as this business was entirely built from scratch – starting in a garage of a building. 

Although I first came here thinking we were only going to see some cool plants, it also broadened my perspective of how businesses like these can help impact the world in some way, even if it’s just a local community. If more businesses like these that give influential opportunities become more common, maybe the world would slowly but surely become a better place. No matter what business you have – even if it’s a growing Nepenthes – anyone can help the local population with better job opportunities to make the community a healthier and happier place. 

Fun Facts: 

 – As Rob Cantley (the owner of Borneo Exotics) is a superstar when it comes to Nepenthes, a native species of them called the Nepenthes robcantleyi has been named after him! 

 – Rob Cantley and his wife are good friends with David Attenborough; he was even their best man during their wedding!

As there are just too many species to showcase, here is a gallery of my favorite Nepenthes I found all with unique shapes, sizes, and patterns: