FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hello, I'm Darren and I've got questions...
Having bonded with my tiny flytrap more than with any previous plant I want to grow it to a level where local cats start disappearing
It's a little pale at the moment but I've got it on a shelf in a very bright, south facing window. I'm having problems finding pure enough water and it hasn't rained here in Manchester UK for weeks.
I'd really appreciate all and any tips and pointers to previous threads/posts for an experienced gardener but newbie to indoor carnivorous plants

Get it outside.

VFT's are the furthest from an indoor plant as you can get.

Even in my region? I'm in NW England.
Satisfyingly I dropped a small woodlouse in earlier and it was snapped up. I quite like observing it & I'm not sure winter temps would be good here.
I definitely want it to be a part of my house plant collection...

Darren63 wrote:I definitely want it to be a part of my house plant collection...

Unfortunately nature doesn't care about that.

You can grow it inside but it will grow poorly after a few years, and likely die, unless you get really good grow lights... and you would have to at least stick it in the refrigerator for the winter months so that it experiences dormancy (they will die without it). Still, with that method the chance for rot is a bit high...fungicide helps but, idk, just not my preferred method...Takes up space, becomes annoying with a lot of plants, have to mess with fungicide, etc. "Short photoperiod" dormancy by decreasing light hours is not an option either. What is the coldest it gets there? if you have a garage you can make a heated cold frame with some reptile heating cable and keep it just above freezing all winter. VFT's really suffer prolonged freezes, but "hovering" dormant a few degrees above freezing is good for giving them a completed rest cycle, then they grow at a natural pace acclimating in the spring time, etc.

It can, in a bad winter, get down to -10c here. The refrigerator idea seems a good one!
Can I use thawed freezer ice at room temp for watering if I can't get rain or distilled water?

1. After it has entered dormancy from being outside you can bring it inside and put it in a garage/shed next to a window (S, E or W facing), cool basement with artificial light or something similar. Then in the spring you put it back outside.

2. No

Darren63 wrote:can't get rain or distilled water?

Every grocery store of modest size carries distilled water. It's different from spring water, mineral water, etc. Commonly used for steam irons.

schmeg wrote:

Darren63 wrote:can't get rain or distilled water?

Every grocery store of modest size carries distilled water. It's different from spring water, mineral water, etc. Commonly used for steam irons.

It can also be labeled demineralised water, you can buy it in your supermarket. In our grocery store it is at the “clean your house” section, I rather not go there but sometimes you have to

Dont worry about dormancy yet, first get your plant outside cause the weather is great for them now.
I live in the Netherlands and we have similar weather as you do. I grow them outside year round.