FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

So I am pretty set on trying to do TC this year to see how well I can do with it. One thing I have been wondering, is it worth putting something like flytrap seeds or sarracenia seeds into TC? Will they grow much faster (size wise) in vitro than if they were grown in soil? When would you want to put carnivorous plant seeds in vitro?

Thanks

Seeds are definitely worth putting in TC and are the best way to get started and learn TC. Starting with tissue is hard because it's hard to get sterilized without killing it, but seeds are much easier to get clean.

I definitely agree with Matt, that beginning TC with seed, offers more initial encouragement and potential successes, than attempting to sterilize explant material for the first time.

After all of these years, I'd rather begin with seed . . .

Germination times seem about the same. Cell growth will be much more rapid in vitro than in vivo. I've had two results with VFT seeds (without hormones). I've had them grow into a big long rhizome with moderately sized traps or just grow into a big ball of small traps that you can divide and replate to get lots more clones of the plant. So in my small amount of experience, you'll definitely get a lot more live tissue using TC, but it will only give you a moderate boost on growing the seed to a large, mature plant.