I only snipped that which has turned brown / black. When the plant woke up, it just picked up where it left off.

That's not one I Grow.

Been away sorry for the delayed response.

I don't snip anything before winter! Mine stay outside year round. Before new growth in the spring, I do trim them just to look better. They freeze solid during winter nights and sometimes thaw out a little during the day. The temps get above 100F in the summer, but cool down at night! Some of my pitchers are two foot tall and they do just fine. Scott

LOL - they aren't gonna survive my winter outside.

Do as you like! They grow wild less than 6 miles from my house. There is some water that trickles all year. I am not sure how much runs while frozen, but they are from there and seem to survive. I'm not really sure of what part of frozen that you didn't understand!

LOL! I'm not sure what part of *frozen* YOU don't understand. First off there is no running water at -30F.

This is from the California Carnivors site...

Climate: Warm-temperate plants, Darlingtonia need warm-temperate summers and chilly winters. Enjoys cool evenings during the summer time. Tolerant of light frost and brief freezes.

Now you probably know better than me I'm sure, but last I checked, -30F does not equal a light frost.

Not to mention Darlingtonia californica is a zone 8 plant; that means it will do just fine in zone 3 right? LOL!

I never advocated that you need to subject your plants to Artic temperatures! I think that they aren't as fragile as people make them out to be. At an even lower elevation than where our local ones grow, we still had six foot drifts of snow in June! The back roads to California through the mountains had to be cleared. My point about the running water was primarily in reference to the summers. That water comes from the snow pack! The first year that I found them in the wild, I almost went off the road after trying to go through a snow drift and that was May. With sustained minus temps like your area has, you likely should provide protection as long as the dormancy requirements are met. I know Peter and Marilee both somewhat at C.C. They both have more knowledge about these things than I will ever have. I brought Peter some Nep seeds back from Borneo the last time I was there and Marilee has relatives in my area. Also, I think that I've read somewhere that there might be distinct differences in the populations. I don't know how factual this is, but I found it facinating. All of the cultivated ones avaliable are from the coastal populations and the climate is far more moderate. However, mine are grown from seeds collected from the alpine population. They are subjected to a far harsher climate and are accordingly far more hardy. Their colors are far more vividly red and they will take more abuse. I could take them out of the bog/pool they grow in and roll it down the hill like a wheel. I think that qualifies as frozen. I think that this might factor into the differences of experience and opinion. Quite possibly yours wouldn't survive growing here either. I've never really heard this brought up and looked at before. It would be very interesting.