MPj04017760000[1] Carnivorous plants

Carnivorous plants are plants that need to eat bugs in order to live. Because the soil they live in is so acidic and nutrient poor they need to get their nutrients from somewhere else. So the way that they get their nutrients is by catching and eating bugs. The most popular carnivorous plant that you have probably heard of is the Venus flytrap. Most people think that the Venus flytrap would live in a dense, steamy tropical rainforest somewhere in South America, but actually the Venus fly trap only lives in north and South Carolina. Other carnivorous plants are the sundew, the pitcher plant, the tropical pitcher plant and the butterwort.

The Venus flytrap is one of the easiest carnivorous plants to grow. Most people think that they are difficult and when they buy them they just die. But if you know how, you can get your plant to live for years. The Venus flytrap lives nutrient poor bogs in the Carolinas so you don’t want to plant your plant in miracle grow potting soil, because if you do your Venus flytrap will deform and probably die. Use a mixture of 50% peat moss and 50% sand you should be able to find peat moss and sand at Home Depot, Lowes or a plant store. You will probably need to mix them together yourself. Venus flytraps do well in four to six inch pots, if you want to put a lot in one pot then you can get a larger one. Make for sure that your pot is plastic and not clay. If your pot is clay then it will collect minerals and will cause your plant to have problems. Also buy a deep plastic saucer that is four to five inches high, you want to put the pot in the deep saucer and fill the saucer with at least one to two inches of water. Venus flytraps are from bogs so they like it really wet. Don’t let the water go below one inch or it will get too dry and your plant will dry up. When you water your Venus flytrap make for sure that you use only distilled water because tap water has minerals in it that your plant won’t like. Most carnivorous plants like a lot of sun so in the summer time set it outside and let it have a lot of direct sunlight. You know if it is getting enough sun if the insides of the traps are red. You can keep your plant outside for most of spring, and fall. But once the temperature drops below 32 or you start having heavy frost, bring it inside for the winter. The Venus flytrap is a bulb and needs to have a winter dormancy to rest for the next year. So put it on a chilly windowsill that doesn’t get a lot of sun. After winter is over bring back outside. You shouldn’t have to feed your plant because it should catch its own.

Californian carnivorous- I like this site because it tells you how to grow your carnivorous plants. It also has a variety of plants for sale. Usually when I get my plants they are healthy and don’t die. It also gives you supplies needed for growing, like soil and pots.

Botanique- is also another good site to go to for carnivorous plants. It offers many different plants to choose from. It also shows you how to grow your plants. It shows you how to start an actual bog garden so you can have a ton of plants.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed on this page are strictly those of the page author. The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by SIUE. If there are any problems with this page, please notify Solomon Miller by email at: mailto:somille@siue.edu

URL: http://www.siue.edu/~somille/cmis108 last updated November 8, 2007.