FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Greetings! I have recently moved to AZ and reaching out to the forum for advice on growing in this climate. It can get rather extreme in the summer and I'm excited about the idea to build a mini-bog outside. Has anyone Had success in this region and how? Thanks!

I currently have young Venus fly traps, Sarracenia's, Mexican butterworts, Sundews, and Nepenthes (indoors)

Welcome to FlytrapCare! There are several growers on the forum who live in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, so hopefully one or more of them respond to give you some helpful tips.

Hi BRS552! In northern AZ, you'd have no issues, but I'm assuming you're located in an arid region? People have had success growing in Phoenix. Winters are fine for dormancy and early spring and late fall are good growth conditions, so it's just the long hot summers you have to deal with.

For "summers" (May-Sept or when the temps are regularly getting into the 100s): the key will be to keep your media temperature cool. A pot on the larger side will probably work better to help insulate your plants. I'd shoot for no less than 6". The bigger it is the more moisture it will hold, which is good for your plant, but also more distilled water you'll go through. I've been told placing the pot inside another pot, with water works well to maintain moisture and insulate from the sun. If using a very large container with a large surface area, I would imagine a white mulch cover would be very beneficial for conserving moisture and reflecting heat. You can try to give it morning sun from sunrise to about 12-12:30 and then shade after that point. If you have them in direct sun after noon, a shade cloth/screen can be used. I'm told aluminet works well. Dappled shade from a tree would also be great. Young plants may still struggle on the hottest days but mature plants should be ok as long as they're acclimated.

Alternatively you could use a climate controlled greenhouse, but that's getting on the expensive side.

xr280xr wrote:Hi BRS552! In northern AZ, you'd have no issues, but I'm assuming you're located in an arid region? People have had success growing in Phoenix. Winters are fine for dormancy and early spring and late fall are good growth conditions, so it's just the long hot summers you have to deal with.

For "summers" (May-Sept or when the temps are regularly getting into the 100s): the key will be to keep your media temperature cool. A pot on the larger side will probably work better to help insulate your plants. I'd shoot for no less than 6". The bigger it is the more moisture it will hold, which is good for your plant, but also more distilled water you'll go through. I've been told placing the pot inside another pot, with water works well to maintain moisture and insulate from the sun. If using a very large container with a large surface area, I would imagine a white mulch cover would be very beneficial for conserving moisture and reflecting heat. You can try to give it morning sun from sunrise to about 12-12:30 and then shade after that point. If you have them in direct sun after noon, a shade cloth/screen can be used. I'm told aluminet works well. Dappled shade from a tree would also be great. Young plants may still struggle on the hottest days but mature plants should be ok as long as they're acclimated.

Alternatively you could use a climate controlled greenhouse, but that's getting on the expensive side.

Great info here, thank you for the advice xr280xr. Have you used White mulch before?

BRS552 wrote:

xr280xr wrote:I would imagine a white mulch cover would be very beneficial

Great info here, thank you for the advice xr280xr. Have you used White mulch before?

No, and I wouldn't put any kind of stones or mulch over them. I meant a plastic cover over the soil with holes for the plants to come through. I've used them for gardening but not for carnivorous plants. Sorry, I should have been more specific. If I were to try it for CPs, I would probably do a few inch margin in the holes around the plants so the soil could get some air, but any empty space in the container would be covered to prevent excess evaporation.