FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Your plants are outstanding! The photos of your maroon monsters is making me want one of my own.

chevyguy8893 wrote:Your plants are outstanding! The photos of your maroon monsters is making me want one of my own.

Thank you! A lot of itme and effort have gone into them and I really appreicate the compliments. I am doing some clean up before dormancy and would love to see some go to a good home. I have to admit the FTS Maroon Monster is a beautful culitvar, very vigorous growth habits. I am very impressed with the overall trap size of my Jaws, especially now during the fall the size is really developed with deep red coloration throughout the trap and the teeth.

bvalente wrote: Thank you! A lot of itme and effort have gone into them and I really appreicate the compliments. I am doing some clean up before dormancy and would love to see some go to a good home. I have to admit the FTS Maroon Monster is a beautful culitvar, very vigorous growth habits. I am very impressed with the overall trap size of my Jaws, especially now during the fall the size is really developed with deep red coloration throughout the trap and the teeth.

That time and effort you have put into them definitely shows. The jaws does look very nice with the fall coloration, it almost looks like the color transitions a bit on the inside of the trap (unless that is just the angle of the photo). How big are the traps on it? I was looking through your sale thread a couple weeks ago wishing that I could get something lol. It will be interesting to see what your plants look like during the next growing season .

chevyguy8893 wrote:

bvalente wrote: Thank you! A lot of itme and effort have gone into them and I really appreicate the compliments. I am doing some clean up before dormancy and would love to see some go to a good home. I have to admit the FTS Maroon Monster is a beautful culitvar, very vigorous growth habits. I am very impressed with the overall trap size of my Jaws, especially now during the fall the size is really developed with deep red coloration throughout the trap and the teeth.

That time and effort you have put into them definitely shows. The jaws does look very nice with the fall coloration, it almost looks like the color transitions a bit on the inside of the trap (unless that is just the angle of the photo). How big are the traps on it? I was looking through your sale thread a couple weeks ago wishing that I could get something lol. It will be interesting to see what your plants look like during the next growing season .

Thank you! I just walked outside and the color is deep red, almost the entire trap. Its pretty similar coloring to my FTS Maroon Monsters believe it or not, I have never seen these as deep red as they are. I will get a picture up in the next few days of my entire collection again. I can't believe how much their coloration has changed these past few days, even on a day-to-day basis.

It's been a lot of researching that has helped me grow these and my other CP's. A lot of talking to Matt 1on1 via PM and other members on here, learning the in's and out's of what to do and tricks of the trade. Just seeing what other people do and what has worked for them, then figuring out how to put my own spin on it so it can work for me . Something that works for one person might not work for another, it all depends on your growing style and technique.

As far as my plants for sale, almost all of the plants I have taken pictures of in this thread are for sale. I am also open to trades, I would love to expand my collection as well as see my plants go to a good home

Jaws






Low Giant


Seed grown


Typical, cup forming


Vigorous


Young Jaws



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Wow, I love that Jaws. It has just kept on getting darker and darker, hasn't it?

katya_dog1 wrote:Wow, I love that Jaws. It has just kept on getting darker and darker, hasn't it?

Thank you! It is pretty crazy, it literally changes on a day-today basis

This growing season I had great results with 100% LFSM from Better-Gro. A few days ago I decided I wanted to try something a little cleaner looking and easier manage the roots with, so I decided after talking with PieGuy I am going to give 60/40 mix of peat moss and silica sand a try.

Mixed my batches up last night, I admit I shouldn't have done it in the cold and dark but patience isn't my strongest virtue The look is clean looking, lightly watered it and some dirt does mix around as expected. I was thinking about a top dressing of LFSM but I want to keep my experiment clear cut. I plan on keeping the plants in these until the end of next growing season and seeing how I like the two.

A LFSM and other mixes each have their pro's and con's, you have to find the best that suits your growing technique. I personally loved the LFSM but whenever repotting or trying to move my plants it always was a pain dealing with the roots and trying to not damage them. I notice with a standard mix or various other CP mixes that use peat moss, it is a lot easier to manage. I want to compare not only the growth rates but also how much they color up next season in comparison to LFSM and see if there is a trade off between the two.

Peat and perlite can be more compact depends how you mix them up. In my growing area 60:40 is still compact. Your sphagnum mix might be looser. Anyway do let the plant grow and compare like how you wanted to. Im curious to find out too.

bvalente wrote:This growing season I had great results with 100% LFSM from Better-Gro. A few days ago I decided I wanted to try something a little cleaner looking and easier manage the roots with, so I decided after talking with PieGuy I am going to give 60/40 mix of peat moss and silica sand a try.

Mixed my batches up last night, I admit I shouldn't have done it in the cold and dark but patience isn't my strongest virtue The look is clean looking, lightly watered it and some dirt does mix around as expected. I was thinking about a top dressing of LFSM but I want to keep my experiment clear cut. I plan on keeping the plants in these until the end of next growing season and seeing how I like the two.

A LFSM and other mixes each have their pro's and con's, you have to find the best that suits your growing technique. I personally loved the LFSM but whenever repotting or trying to move my plants it always was a pain dealing with the roots and trying to not damage them. I notice with a standard mix or various other CP mixes that use peat moss, it is a lot easier to manage. I want to compare not only the growth rates but also how much they color up next season in comparison to LFSM and see if there is a trade off between the two.

So even though my plants are dormant, I am already hating peat moss mixed with anything. My original plan was to see how they would grow for a complete season but I am hating how every time I water them, material goes every where and covers my traps . I understand I can put a top dressing on it but that would be only a bandaid for the problem. In February or March, when they're out of dormancy, I am putting them back into 100% LFSM.

How about tray watering? Or misting with a nozzle adjuatable watering can.

tish wrote:How about tray watering? Or misting with a nozzle adjuatable watering can.

Even that, in comparison to LFSM, is a lot more work and a nuisance. The media easily gets disturbed in comparison to LFSM and seems much more of a hassle to work with than I previously thought.

Good to see another grower very successful in 100% LFSM! After a year of growing a few cultivars in LFSM (compared to peat:sand:perlite) and the growth differences involved, I'm convinced enough to switch all my pots next year!

Kevonicus wrote:Good to see another grower very successful in 100% LFSM! After a year of growing a few cultivars in LFSM (compared to peat:sand:perlite) and the growth differences involved, I'm convinced enough to switch all my pots next year!

The thing is, I really wanted to give this a shot, I went and bought a big bale of peat moss and a bag of silica sand but it is really annoying for me how messy this gets. The only benefit I could see is how easy it is to wash the roots after pulling them up, but for my growing technique it is not worth it. After dormancy I will be switching everything back to LFSM, meanwhile the VFT can enjoy their 60/40 mix for dormancy.

My results with LFSM have been very impressive. The roots have grown thicker and longer with extremely healthy rhizomes. Despite a couple repots the past growing season, none of the VFT I have missed a beat or were set back. Even the ones I sold/traded that others can vouch for on here were in great shape and recover very quickly.

If all other environmental factors are the same (light, water, wind, etc) LFSM , when compared to a peat mix, allows more oxygen to get to the roots while maintaining enough structural integrity for the roots to grow through and hold themselves solid. When compared to others (with the same cultivar) in peat moss, my plants seem to be a lot bigger and healthier, even at a younger age.

I am by no means an expert like Matt, but I have been able to pick his brain and research a lot on here to really cut the learning curve and make some good progress.

bvalente wrote:

Kevonicus wrote:Good to see another grower very successful in 100% LFSM! After a year of growing a few cultivars in LFSM (compared to peat:sand:perlite) and the growth differences involved, I'm convinced enough to switch all my pots next year!

The thing is, I really wanted to give this a shot, I went and bought a big bale of peat moss and a bag of silica sand but it is really annoying for me how messy this gets. The only benefit I could see is how easy it is to wash the roots after pulling them up, but for my growing technique it is not worth it. After dormancy I will be switching everything back to LFSM, meanwhile the VFT can enjoy their 60/40 mix for dormancy.

My results with LFSM have been very impressive. The roots have grown thicker and longer with extremely healthy rhizomes. Despite a couple repots the past growing season, none of the VFT I have missed a beat or were set back. Even the ones I sold/traded that others can vouch for on here were in great shape and recover very quickly.

If all other environmental factors are the same (light, water, wind, etc) LFSM , when compared to a peat mix, allows more oxygen to get to the roots while maintaining enough structural integrity for the roots to grow through and hold themselves solid. When compared to others (with the same cultivar) in peat moss, my plants seem to be a lot bigger and healthier, even at a younger age.

I am by no means an expert like Matt, but I have been able to pick his brain and research a lot on here to really cut the learning curve and make some good progress.

Your absolutely right! Progress is being made in the hobby for sure. Even Matt had his doubts on LFSM at first, and with all good reasons. It's far easier to over water LFSM, and they dry out too fast in full sun in small pots (less then 5-4"). Simply the 50:50 peat:sand ratio (despite being cheaper and most readability accessible) is the most forgiving under almost all pot sizes/growing conditions. Finding good quality LFSM, coupled with a large/tall enough pot without a tray (maybe need a tray in summer during vacation etc), and good lighting, its just as easy as peat:sand and produces healthier more robust looking plants for all the reasons you stated .

I do hope one day we can find a superior media to LFSM that is also renewable (in a less impactful way). The threads I've read with Coconut coir still hasn't convinced me enough to switch for VFT's. Though for my other potted plants it works extremely well at part of the mix .