There is a great, book sized, FAQ here: http://www.sarracenia.com/faq.html There's also a book which I would almost call required reading for anyone starting to work with Carnivorous Plants here: http://www.californiacarnivores.com/thesavagegardenbypeterdamato.aspx As for the fastest growing, not sure. Some cultivars of VFTs grow pretty fast -- "Vigorous", for example, is named just for that reason. I hear Cephalotus is a really difficult plant to grow; I haven't tried it because of that. You didn't mention any Sundews -- I would think you would probably want a Cape Sundew, they are a staple of any Carnivorous Plant collection (mainly cause they grow so WELL -- they're almost a weed).. Drosera Adelae is also really prolific (in theory, I've killed 2 without any luck). You could also look at the Pygmy sundews for an interesting contrast -- they are extremely small but also somewhat prolific as each plant can make hundreds of clones each year. I hear some of the Bladderworts are pretty fast growers as well, but I'm not sure, as I do not currently grow any of these. I am not sure as to the scope of your project. Is it just an observational thing?

Thank you so, so much for all your help. I have been trying to fill my house with cool looking plants. I live in B.C. Canada in a small little town in the mountains and the grocery store closest to me continually gets some unusual plants. I want to keep them alive, I truly appreciate your help. We have a lot of snow so maybe I will just let the snow melt and use that to water. I have been just using tap water but the water here is very pure. What do you think doll?

Thank you all for your advice, I will look all those CPs up! Any good sites that you would recommend buying them from? The only CPs that I can find in the stores are VFTs. Also, if I simply get a tall glass vase with straight sides, would that be enough air flow for most CPs? I never intended to enclose them as I fully understand this is a no-no... I just want to keep them safe from fourth graders while allowing my students to observe them. Hmmm, maybe I could even attach a small fan to the upper lip. We'll see how inventive I get!

Tommy wrote "The humidity need is a MYTH. Good lighting is far more important" I agree that good lighting is more important but not all Nepenthes will grow well and pitcher prolifically without the added humidity. Pitchers can be stunted and aborted and don't last long if not kept moist. The plants I have in a terrarium have pitchers on just about every leaf and some pitchers are 5-6 months old. The pitchers on the plants I have that are in open air only last maybe 2 months and don't grow on every leaf. Since I have been misting them 2-3 times a day they are doing much better. The biggest problem with planting a Nep. in a terrarium will be keeping the water level right and not let it stagnate. I know it's not very pleasing to the eye but that's the reason for keeping them in their own pot. Some Pygmy Drosera will do good in a terrarium. D. occidentalis, pygmeae and omissa and any hybrids, Badgerup, Carberup and roseana should do well in a plated terrarium. If you insist on planting a Nepenthes in a terrarium I suggest you keep it in it's own pot so you can easily take it out without disturbing the roots if problems arise. Even then you may need to pot up or transplant into a bigger pot. I have 2 larger plants that will not last the next growing season in the terrarium(getting too BIG) so they will have to be acclimated to lower humidity this coming spring. Lucky for me the humidity rarely gets below 50% here.