skip to main content

Carnivorous Plants

My Venus fly traps are weird! Help

8 years ago

I bought 2 fly traps at a local store, which doesn't have the best reputation regarding their plants. My mom bought a few trees from there and the poor things were ill. I saw these and I wanted to try and rescue them. See.... The one in the blue pit was doing fine until last week. I water them with distilled water, I do everything I used to do to my sundew. I don't know how to bring them back to life. The above photo is of the blue pot one. When I got it it was mostly black and very sad looking... As you can see it has red color in it which is a good thing. And then a week and a half later it's barely alive. I've been reading and doing what I can.

Featured Answer

macranthos

8 years ago

Full sun? New potting medium? Repotted recently? Location? Water tray?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

Abby Kube
Original Author
8 years ago
I live in Alberta, so I try to give as much sun as the weather here allows. I repotted recently, and yes they do have a water tray
Related Discussions
Is my venus fly trap dying?
Q
Comments (31)
Novia11 Badnews, you purchased your plant from someone who doesn't know carnivorous plants. NEVER feed raw meat to them. Feed them only insects tht could crawl or fly into the traps. Also, you need to use distilled water or collected rainwater for watering. Put the plant on a window that gets sunlight all day long and it should be fine. You can cut off the top of a soda bottle and put it over the plant or a DIY terrarium. Dollars stores often have small glass bowls that also work. Lastly, if it dies back, leave it be for a bit. Venus flytraps need to go dormant and they often regrow from their rhizome if they're not too damaged.
...See More
my first venus fly trap
Q
Comments (2)
The main reason people usually dont buy vfts from local nurseriesis most places dont know how to take care of them. they order them in bulk, and sell them on the shelf usully with the houseplants which is not the correct place. BASIC CARE SHEET 1. VFTS require a dormancy period 2. they must be watered with distilled, rain, or reverse osmosis water and be kept moist at all times. 3. they thrive best in full sun 4. humidity is'nt that important mine are growing outside and temps are getting in lower 50sF of course mine have been outside all year round. 5. vfts basic soil mix is 50peat:50perlite mix Sorry if you already knew this. since temps are getting low in your area you depending on the health of your plant you should get ready for dormancy. once the first frost hits your plant it should trigger this dormancy period and die back, bulb still intact, only if its healthy enough if you've had it inside you might want to skip dormancy this year just because im not sure if your plant will have enough time to acclimate to outdoor temp and be pushed into dormancy, but dont get the impression the plants will be able to skip dormancy every year the plant will only be healthiest if it experiences its dormancy period. To tell if your plant is healthy if it has witnessed 50F temps it should be slowing down growth and the main way to tell if your plant is healthy is to check its bulb and make sure its cream-white in color. im not exactly sure on how to go with your plant dormancy, hopefully a fellow forum member can help you with this, so to other members who read this. If the plant is healthy, should it be put outside to acclimate? hope this helps, id assume it would be but i dont know the health of the plant.
...See More
Is my venus fly trap alive?
Q
Comments (1)
Well, I remember when I had gone through the stage of anxiety that you did... As far as I can tell, your flytrap is fine, and you even took the extra mile to cut off the dead leaves. If it's on your porch and outside, it might be dormant. Although I don't know if it gets cold or dark enough for VFT to go dormant in Florida, it certainly does in New Jersey. Traps not responding is a sign of dormancy, or just adapting to your new environment. To sum it all up, no, your flytrap is not dead, it might be in dormancy(you can do some research on that online), and since you're doing everything right, like using distilled water and such, your flytrap will most likely live. P.S flytraps like to be in direct sun, so it's fine to take it out of the bag, and I also got my first flytrap in Lowes too :D. David
...See More
My Venus Fly Trap (Pic Included)
Q
Comments (18)
My baby traps rock. Everytime I see it, I discover another small plant and say "Wow, I don't remember putting that one in.." I just think that's my memory slipping on me, haha. I wish I had a secret. I just did the whole 50-50 with the sphagnum peat moss and sand with just a few small pieces of drying sphagnum. Maybe a little less sand then you tend to see in many pictures (I doubt you would ever see a VFT on the beach). Let the algea grow or something. Then springtails showed up and started eating the algea and before I knew it, moss sprouted. I doubt that's anything of a technique. It was completely un-called for. But yes, it's sphagnum. In a extreme small form. I don't know what to do if it gets too tall, so I guess I'm going to have to buy a tiny set of scissors to keep it nice. But it's extremely fragile. gently glide your finger over the top of the moss and your finger is all green and green powder (the tiny leaves) fly everywhere. Usually landing in the water dish. And before I know it, algea starts growing in the water (not thick, but all web-like). I got to repot it soon. The roots of some split at the bottom and now I got 2 or more plants next to eachother instead of the original one that I planted. These plants are hell. But I love 'em.
...See More
tommyr_gw Zone 6
8 years ago
How much Sun? How many hours? What kind of water do you use?
Abby Kube thanked tommyr_gw Zone 6
Abby Kube
Original Author
8 years ago
Distilled water, and I give it as much sun as the weather here permits and lately it's been cloudy so I put it by a fluorescent light. When the days are nice it gets about 6 hours of sunshine.
swfx2
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Your plants are weak from not getting enough light (that's why they are wilting and losing the color). Flytraps are plants that need direct sunlight to be healty so unless you can move them outside you will need to add a better light to compensate. Perhaps the windows are filtering the light.

How are you watering? Don't do it from above, put the pot in a plate with water so the substrate is always moist but not waterlogged, these are bog plants.
Abby Kube thanked swfx2
tommyr_gw Zone 6
8 years ago
VFTs are NOT houseplants. I know people want to grow them inside but it's not a smart thing to do. They need more than 6 hours of Sun a day. Windows DO filter out light and UV and other rays that the plant needs. I usually avoid posts now from people wanting to grow them indoors. So frustrating.....
Abby Kube thanked tommyr_gw Zone 6
Meris
8 years ago
I had a Venus flytrap for years, in New Hampshire. It Loved peat moss at its medium, and lived in a brandy glass. Once it got bigger it lived in a fishbowl. Oh, and we fed it a small piece of raw hamburger every other week.

Don't overwater it either.
tommyr_gw Zone 6
8 years ago
Raw hamburger is a no no and mine sit in a water tray with about a half inch of rain water during the growing season 24/7 OUTDOORS.
Abby Kube thanked tommyr_gw Zone 6
Abby Kube
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you!!
Meris
8 years ago
Well, that worked for Seymour, & this was before Google & the Internet & he lived a good 8 years. He went into classrooms for visits & I had high school science teachers ask how I got him so healthy.

He was a cool plant. Good luck with yours.
Abby Kube thanked Meris

Related Stories

MOST POPULAR How to Get Rid of Those Pesky Summer Fruit Flies

By Mitchell Parker

Learn what fruit flies are, how to prevent them and how to get rid of them in your home

MOST POPULAR 7 Ways to Design Your Kitchen to Help You Lose Weight

By Mitchell Parker

In his new book, Slim by Design, eating-behavior expert Brian Wansink shows us how to get our kitchens working better

GARDENING AND LANDSCAPING Porch Life: Banish the Bugs

By Becky Harris

Don't let insects be the bane of your sweet tea and swing time. These screening and product ideas will help keep bugs at bay on the porch

HOUZZ TOURS My Houzz: Cozy Country Meets Bohemian Artistic in Australia

By Luci.D Interiors

Healthy helpings of salvage and rustic art give a pastureland home free-spirited style

HOUSEKEEPING What's That Sound? 9 Home Noises and How to Fix Them

By Mitchell Parker

Bumps and thumps might be driving you crazy, but they also might mean big trouble. We give you the lowdown and which pro to call for help

KITCHEN DESIGN 10 Big Space-Saving Ideas for Small Kitchens

By Laura Gaskill

Feeling burned over a small cooking space? These features and strategies can help prevent kitchen meltdowns

EDIBLE GARDENS Natural Ways to Get Rid of Weeds in Your Garden

By Abundant City

Use these techniques to help prevent the spread of weeds and to learn about your soil

LIFE How to Outsmart Backyard Critters

By Tiffany Carboni

Learn to think like a raccoon, skunk or squirrel to keep your home safe and your garden intact

ECLECTIC HOMES Houzz Tour: Good Vibes for a Hollywood Couple in Laurel Canyon

By Becky Harris

Actor Ian Harding and artist Sophia Hart’s personalities shine in a house nestled in the trees

KITCHEN DESIGN How to Choose the Right Hood Fan for Your Kitchen

By The Sky is the Limit Design

Keep your kitchen clean and your home's air fresh by understanding all the options for ventilating via a hood fan

Sponsored

Davidson Builders

1 Review

Franklin County's Full-Scale General Contractor