FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I'm having a bit of trouble finding a suitable place for my plants to go dormant. I keep them at a windowsill at the office at the moment, but I don't think I can find a place that'll drop to a temperature significantly lower than 20 degrees celsius. I think that's not really cold enough. I've a cold enough room in my house, but the light there would have to be provided by an artificial source - likely a fluorescent source. Would that be enough for the dormant period?

Some people store VFT's in fridge for dormancy, i'm guessing that light levels don't make a huge difference as long as they are able to go dormant

You can use a fluorescent (including CFL) bulb that is in the 5000-6500 K color temp range. Make sure you get the right color temperature or the light will not benefit your plant. They're often called daylight or grow light bulbs but look for the 5000-6500 K. You'll want to run it around 12 hrs a day at 12-16 inches from the plant. CFL would be the best bet if you only have 1 or 2 plants. For more, I've found the 4 ft. fixtures to be the best value based on both the sales price, and the fact that I always end up filling up any extra space with more plants.

You want to make sure the daytime temperatures are no higher than about 18 C and at night, the closer to 0 the better. A garage or shed can be a good option if you have artificial lighting available. I've also sat them next to a sunny window in a spare room where I closed the vent and cracked the window. It worked ok but wasn't optimal and left my house pretty rob-able all winter.

Mufasa wrote:Some people store VFT's in fridge for dormancy, i'm guessing that light levels don't make a huge difference as long as they are able to go dormant

They will survive without any light if they are nice and cold, but it's not optimal. They do better if they can keep a little green on top and store up some energy for spring. So Mufasa's right, this is also an option for you.

Mufasa wrote:Some people store VFT's in fridge for dormancy, i'm guessing that light levels don't make a huge difference as long as they are able to go dormant

All mine go in the fridge once temps get down steadily into the low 40's F.
They went in last week along with my Sarrs and Filiformis.

Been doing this for 6-7 years now.

Fridge will be the last resort, i guess, I'll need to find one safe from roommates and colleagues. I'll try to find the correct type of lamp, thank you for the tips!