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Discussions about anything related to Venus Flytraps, cultivars and named clones

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By RavenM
Posts:  4
Joined:  Mon May 11, 2009 5:34 pm
#74344
Hello everyone,

I'm very new to raising venus fly traps, especially from seed. The very first one I got to grow from seed is over a year old. It was very healthy up until a few days ago, when the central heating came on because its been cold outside. I'm used to some casualties this time of year because the change in the air is just so extreme. But this... caught me by surprise. Usually, I keep a lid over my little one year old trap, but lately I've been taking it off to get it use to the regular air. When I went to water it last, I discovered it to be almost completely dried out. I flipped. I had just looked at it not more than a day or two earlier and it had been fine.

Here's a picture of the poor little crispied guy:

Image

I gave it some water from the bottom so the medium is moist again. Is there anything else I can do? Is there any hope? It hasn't turned completely black but I'm wondering if its too young to survive... :cry:
By dantt99
Posts:  5045
Joined:  Sun Oct 17, 2010 4:48 am
#74346
I'm not sure, It probably got pissed when you took the cover off and got exposed to the air...
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By Matt
Location: 
Posts:  22523
Joined:  Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:28 pm
#74361
RavenM wrote:Usually, I keep a lid over my little one year old trap, but lately I've been taking it off to get it use to the regular air.
I wouldn't advise ever covering them. There is no need for it and it actually increases the chances that you'll have some problems with mold, fungal growth, etc.
RavenM wrote:When I went to water it last, I discovered it to be almost completely dried out. I flipped.
Oops! You're not the first to make that mistake (I know for a fact because I've done it).
RavenM wrote:I gave it some water from the bottom so the medium is moist again. Is there anything else I can do? Is there any hope?
There may be. It's possible that the tiny rhizome didn't dry out all the way and it may grow back, but the leaves that are on it are definitely dead. Unfortunately, letting baby flytraps dry out is usually fatal because they don't have much stored water in their tiny rhizomes to help them last through drought and they don't have much in the way of a root system to be able to get as much moisture from the soil as possible.

Good luck with the recovery and let us know if the baby makes a come back.
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By RavenM
Posts:  4
Joined:  Mon May 11, 2009 5:34 pm
#74381
Thanks, Matt for re-assuring me. I know it must be a common mistake, it was just doing so well for so long and it was my first one.. So I can't help getting sentimental. ;)

Also thanks for the 'covering' advice. I'll keep that in mind next time I'm starting some as I actually have been having a bit of mold trouble with the last batch--the mold seemed to consume a few tiny plants! Creepy! Brings to mind a question though, when is the best time to start them from seed? Do they prefer a certain time of year...?

I do hope my little first-born makes a come back. You will certainly hear about it when/if he does. I'll be so happy. :)

-Raven
By slark78
Location: 
Posts:  124
Joined:  Sun Jan 03, 2010 6:38 am
#74393
RavenM wrote:Brings to mind a question though, when is the best time to start them from seed? Do they prefer a certain time of year...?
Hopefully someone will correct me if i'm wrong, but my guess would be spring through to early summer, this is there natural time to grow from seed and gives them the longest and best growing conditions to get established and survive the first dormancy.

Hope the little critter survives!
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By Steve_D
Location: 
Posts:  3913
Joined:  Tue Nov 18, 2008 5:06 pm
#74409
Your little Venus Flytrap looks like it is surrounded by a species of carpet moss. Carpet moss grows so dense and can press so hard on a growing baby Venus Flytrap that the Flytrap can't form a good root system to provide enough water to the plant for it to grow healthily. In combination with the moss's ability to suck up most of the water for itself while strangling the Flytrap, that can cause the Flytrap to dry fairly fast or even to die fairly quickly.

That may have been a problem, although other things may have caused or contributed to the current appearance of your baby Venus Flytrap.

Good luck! :)
Steve_D liked this
By RavenM
Posts:  4
Joined:  Mon May 11, 2009 5:34 pm
#74613
Slark78: Thanks :) That's kind of what I suspected. Is it too early to start looking for seeds to grow for that time of the year then?

Steve_D: Carpet moss? For a long while I was able to keep that stuff at bay.. like I said, the trap was/is over a year old but in recent months I started to question whether clearing it by hand was a good thing or not.

Is there a way to prevent/get rid of carpet moss for the next time I'm growing them?
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By Steve_D
Location: 
Posts:  3913
Joined:  Tue Nov 18, 2008 5:06 pm
#74615
RavenM wrote:Is there a way to prevent/get rid of carpet moss for the next time I'm growing them?
Carpet moss is a little hard to get rid of completely in a colony of many potted plants. It can be weeded to some extent by hand, and when it gets too bad one can repot the plant(s) into fresh medium.

I have experimented by taking some growing medium, putting a sizable amount in a large bowl, adding water to moisten it, and then microwaving it for perhaps 10-12 minutes on medium or medium high power. That sterilizes the medium to some extent and seems to kill most of the moss spores. I then let the medium cool and dry, and use it for the top .5-1 inch (1.5-3 centimeters) layer of growing medium when I repot. That seems to work fairly well.

When I want a more extreme (more extremely sterile) top dressing, I put growing medium in a pressure cooker cook it for 20-30 minutes after the pot reaches pressure.

Good luck. :)
By slark78
Location: 
Posts:  124
Joined:  Sun Jan 03, 2010 6:38 am
#74662
I'm not too sure how long the seeds are viable for! (can anyone help?) but if i'm sure if you find seeds from a clone that your keen on, and you keep them in a cool, dry, dark place they will be good to go when spring arrives!
By bmgj
Location: 
Posts:  1
Joined:  Tue Nov 16, 2010 6:43 pm
#76135
I'm new here. BOY, what a list of info. here! Someone told me to water the plant every day. Is this necessary? Also, my poor li'l plant keeps getting black spots on them, whats that all about. My best bet is plastic fly traps. Also, their all green, not pretty red ones. I live in a dry part of the world.
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By Matt
Location: 
Posts:  22523
Joined:  Mon Apr 21, 2008 11:28 pm
#76143
bmgj wrote:Someone told me to water the plant every day. Is this necessary?
There isn't any set watering schedule that will work for everyone all throughout the year. You simply need to water enough to keep the soil moist, but not wet. This time of year where I live that means watering once every 10 to 15 days or so.
bmgj wrote:Also, my poor li'l plant keeps getting black spots on them, whats that all about.
That could be caused by a myriad of things. Without any information about how you're growing the plant (location, amount of light, type of soil, pot size, type of water used, etc.) that's nearly an impossible question to answer with any certainty.

I'd suggest starting your own thread and giving some background information about your plant and perhaps a photo and asking for suggestions. You'll likely get a lot some helpful responses :)
By Kevin29
Location: 
Posts:  5
Joined:  Sun Dec 05, 2010 9:17 pm
#77755
I just use all sphagnum moss and keep my pots soaking in about 1/2 to 1inch of collected rain water here in montana and just grow them on a table in front of a south facing window. They seem to do well and the VFT 'Rad Dragon' are all getting their color back now as there were about 2 months from sept to the middle of november without much sun. I hate montana weather but the plants are getting their red back and one is starting to turn purple on the traps. Since it is too cold to do much with plants outside, I just melt snow when I need to to water the plants and do the refrigerator dormancy. Since we have had alot of sun and it warms up the kitchen when it is very sunny, I leave about 1/2" water in the bottom of the bins and just let them all sit in rain water for now. They seem to do fine that way and get the right amount of oxygen and water at the roots. I am hoping to get blooms this coming spring and I will just let the seeds fall from the pods naturally and germinate the way they would in the wild. I have never had good results covering any plants except larger orchids as the humidity causes problems and mold, and covering plants can overheat them if they are in sunlight at all.
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