Carnivorous Plant keeping -anyone here tried it ?

[macabethiel]

Now that I have managed to get Orchids to live and thrive for several years I have decided to have a go at keeping some of the Carnivorous Plants.

I started by buying a small Sarracemia type low level plant (not a full Pitcher) that came in a Kilner glass jar with a glass inlet lid to allow flys to enter - it was in the B&Q sale at £4.00. It was the best of a dying bunch so I have started by feeding it with Distilled Water and it has already picked up so hope it will grow. Currently being winter they are pretty dormant.
Carnivore Plant by Ted Bagshaw, on Flickr

The Venus Fly Trap was a bit pricier at £5.99 in a plastic container from local garden centre - it looks very healthy. I have planted it in a mixture of Sphagnum Moss, Pearlite & Lime Free Peat in a glass jar. I have quite a few small black flies in our conservatory due to the various house plants so am hoping they will be enough to feed them.

Venus Fly Trap by Ted Bagshaw, on Flickr

Any tips from members who have kept/grown such things would be welcome. I did try a Venus Fly Trap about 40 years ago but killed it using tap water - no internet back then so did not know that water with minerals was a killer.lol

 

[scrumpydude]

We have a few Venus fly traps here and some sticky something or others. Only advice we've been given is to keep them moist (pot sat in a tray of half inch of butt water) and to cut any flowers off. It would appear that growing flowers/seeds will likely be the death of the plant. Google knows.

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[johnb5177]

Like this you mean.........:nenau

https://youtu.be/SfcPnul77T8

 

[macabethiel]

Like this you mean.........:nenau

https://youtu.be/SfcPnul77T8

I need to learn on the tame versions first the one above is only for experienced house plant keepers !

 

[Banshee]

Awesome thread, can't wait to see how you do with these :clap

 

[PCr_1]

I'v got a few...

I have a couple of Sarracenia (pitcher) and Sundew (sticky) plants to protect various plants in the greenhouse. From memory the recommnedation was to keep them wet from spring to autumn and moist in a cold greenhouse over winter but protect from frost or freezing. Easier said than done here and last year I "double" insulated them in a storage box and they all survived. I also have a venus fly trap but that seems to catch more slugs than flies! Maybe the others are doing too good a job!
I bought mine from Matthew Soper who has a wealth of information (and plants) on his website.
The pitcher plants look brilliant (in a bizarre sort of way) when they are fully grown.

 

[macabethiel]

Pitcher Plant - great looking oddball.

I have a couple of Sarracenia (pitcher) and Sundew (sticky) plants to protect various plants in the greenhouse. From memory the recommnedation was to keep them wet from spring to autumn and moist in a cold greenhouse over winter but protect from frost or freezing. Easier said than done here and last year I "double" insulated them in a storage box and they all survived. I also have a venus fly trap but that seems to catch more slugs than flies! Maybe the others are doing too good a job!
I bought mine from Matthew Soper who has a wealth of information (and plants) on his website.
The pitcher plants look brilliant (in a bizarre sort of way) when they are fully grown.

I too like the look of a full Pitcher Plant where they hang down like ornaments from the mother plant. That's for the future if I can source one locally.

I like unusual stuff, I have a "Stag Horn Fern" that in the winter hangs in our Conservatory though I have to move it for the summer to stop the leaves from burning. I have tried to keep them a number of times over the last 25 years or so they always died after about a year. It is only in the last 3 years that I have kept one going it has grown really well.

I planted my current Stag Horn Fern in a lined wire basket with a layer of Sphagnum Moss using Orchid Medium not any soil. I only water it when the leaves start to droop then I fully immerse/soak it and then let it drain. In the winter this lasts about 8 weeks in the summer usually every 3 weeks or so depending on how hot it gets. The main fonds are a good 12-15" in length.

 

[Terrano Steve]

Many years ago I had a Venus fly trap, I probably killed it with tap water as I didn't know any better.

 

[elty001]

My eldest daughters had a couple of venus fly traps years ago.
They kept them going for a good few years.
A combination of the right compost and water was all they used.
The water they used came from a small nature pond we had in the garden.
They eventually lost interest in them and they died off.