Growing Venus Fly Trap in Cape Town

[Deago999]

I bought a Venus fly trap kit, so seeds, the peat pellet, growing instructions and a pot.
However,
With venus fly traps when they grow from seeds they get very very very small traps, but my question is, when do you start feeding them? i.e. only when it has a trap big enough or do you feed them very very small bugs when they have small traps or what is the case?

Also in the event that you need to transplant them, what peat do you buy from the stores to fill the pot - I was told not to use potting soil as there is just too much nutrients.

ALSO - come winter , is there anything specific Id have to do with the venus fly trap to activate its dormancy period? like , will Cape Town get cold enough for it to just become more dormant, or do i give it less sun, or do I give it cold water to mimic cold weather conditions?

Would really like some help on this, please experienced growers or first hand experience only

 

[semaphore]

Traps are self sufficient, if you leave it outside it will catch bugs due to its secretions. You can give it blood worms, but its not required. The traps are small (but get bigger obviously) and will only last three traps and die off and new ones come in its place. Do not use fertilizers at all, that is a guaranteed death sentence and also use only rain water or spring water. Tap water will stunt and kill it eventually. Use a mixture of sphagnum peat moss with silicate. They will create their own type of bog environment, they must also be kept in a small tray of water as they draw water up from the roots. Do not water from the top down. In winter they will die back and you just give it water maybe once every two weeks just to keep the roots from drying out. There is no need to mimic anything. When they die back you can cut as close to the soil level to get rid of the dead traps.

Source:

I grow lots of traps, pitcher plants, morning dews, etc.

 

[henry1103]

Where can you get hold of venus flytrap seeds (or plants)?

 

[semaphore]

Where can you get hold of venus flytrap seeds (or plants)?

There is a place in cape town called pans plants i believe. I usually grow from cuttings on mine when it gets unruly.

 

[Alton Turner Blackwood]

I've been thinking of growing something and this seems like a good idea.

 

[Deago999]

Where can you get hold of venus flytrap seeds (or plants)?

I actually got my kit off take alot- for R100 you get some seeds, a peat pellet a pot and a growing guide -

http://www.takealot.com/grow-your-own-venus-fly-trap/PLID3560047

and if you order off thier app you get free delivery.

Otherwise there is a site called like seeds for africa or something that sells 5 seeds for R23.00 excl delivery.

Otherwise if you want plants builders warehouse often has them or most nursarys do, but they were like R100 for a single plant.

 

[EchoZA]

Mine has been living on the windowsill for 3 years now, and still going strong (despite the missus forgetting to water it while I'm away on business )

 

[semaphore]

I actually got my kit off take alot- for R100 you get some seeds, a peat pellet a pot and a growing guide -

http://www.takealot.com/grow-your-own-venus-fly-trap/PLID3560047

and if you order off thier app you get free delivery.

Otherwise there is a site called like seeds for africa or something that sells 5 seeds for R23.00 excl delivery.

Otherwise if you want plants builders warehouse often has them or most nursarys do, but they were like R100 for a single plant.

Do not buy from them. Their seeds are total junk and a rip off.

 

[semaphore]

I've been thinking of growing something and this seems like a good idea.

Get a plant and just take care of it. Once the plant starts growing it will produce seeds or you can just clone it and grow it out. That is how i grow my morning dew by tissue culturing in a petri dish.

 

[SauRoNZA]

Yeah I figure "feeding" it is probably a bad idea.

It will feed itself as the need arrises. Treat it like any other plant .

 

[Slootvreter]

Yeah I figure "feeding" it is probably a bad idea.

It will feed itself as the need arrises. Treat it like any other plant .

Correct. Only thing is you don't water it like a normal plant, you put the pot in a little dish of water, basically sucking it up from below.

 

[Deago999]

Yeah I figure "feeding" it is probably a bad idea.

It will feed itself as the need arrises. Treat it like any other plant .

The only reason I was going to feed it was because it would be kept indoors and possibly in a terrarium so the "need to feed" would need to be a requirement.

 

[semaphore]

The only reason I was going to feed it was because it would be kept indoors and possibly in a terrarium so the "need to feed" would need to be a requirement.

If that is the case you can get blood worms. Another alternative pheonix worms (Hermetia illucens). But i have not seen those in recent years.

 

[Kameelperdza]

Hi I know this is an old but u want to ask can I use reverse osmoses water? You know that buy at the h2o water refilling shops at the stores.

 

[Slootvreter]

Hi I know this is an old but u want to ask can I use reverse osmoses water? You know that buy at the h2o water refilling shops at the stores.

I used just normal tap water. Plants grew for a long time, and eventually died when we went on holiday and the little prick that was supposed to look after them didn't.

 

[AstroTurf]

Hi I know this is an old but u want to ask can I use reverse osmoses water? You know that buy at the h2o water refilling shops at the stores.

You can also use distilled water.

 

[Kameelperdza]

H2O oasis is very cheap, asks only R6 to refill 5litre water bottle. On their bottles it states reverse osmoses has been used. Really hope my plants grows.

 

[Batista]

Get a plant and just take care of it. Once the plant starts growing it will produce seeds or you can just clone it and grow it out. That is how i grow my morning dew by tissue culturing in a petri dish.

Damn son, we need to talk - where do you get your agar from?DIY or prebought?