FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I bought a red piranha recently. The plant I got is almost all red, with just a tad of green at the bottom. The picture I saw while buying it had the traps showing green on the outside, as well as green and red leaves. Is that picture wrong, or will my plant become more green as it matures? I really like the red-on-green look, and that's part of why I bought it.

Also, since I'd never seen a Venus fly trap up-close before, I needed to close one of the traps myself. I brushed the tip of a fork through several of the traps (about 5) before one closed. Do not all the traps on a plant work?

Very excited to have such a strange and interesting life form to look after. I need to buy some sphagnum moss so I can put it in a larger pot.

This is my plant:

The plant is supposed to be red. The brighter light the redder

Horatia wrote:The plant I got is almost all red, with just a tad of green at the bottom. The picture I saw while buying it had the traps showing green on the outside, as well as green and red leaves. Is that picture wrong, or will my plant become more green as it matures? I really like the red-on-green look, and that's part of why I bought it.

The photo in the store is one that Steve took. His plants tend to be more green than my plants. Most of my plants have very intense coloration this year and that's why your Red Piranha is mostly red. Depending on the kind of light you give it, it could be anywhere from mostly green to mostly red. My mother pot of Red Piranhas that I grow outside in full sun have a green rim around the edge of the trap. Growing in the greenhouse, like the plant you have mostly has been, they tend to get more red. My guess is that the new growth the plant puts out won't likely be as red. And as the plant matures, they do seem to get the red-on-green look more readily.

Horatia wrote:I brushed the tip of a fork through several of the traps (about 5) before one closed. Do not all the traps on a plant work?

During shipping, the traps were all likely tripped a few times. This usually makes them become unresponsive for a while or forever.

That's a great photo of the plant too. It looks very happy there in the bright light

UPDATE: For an example of what a plant looks like after going to a different grower, see this thread:
http://www.flytrapcare.com/phpBB3/sligh ... tml#p67486

That plant looked nearly identical to yours when I shipped it. Notice the new growth is much greener.

Hi Horatia!

Nice photo. A healthy, beautiful 'Red Piranha', with stunning, intense red coloration.

Definitely the kind of coloration I prefer. One of my favorite cultivars.

For photo comparisons, check out Carnivorous Plant Photofinder.

You definitely have an authentic 'Red Piranha', a clone from the original.

'Red Piranha': Ed Read and Ivan Snyder -> David Conner -> Matt/Steve -> customer

All the best on your new, awesome 'Red Piranha'.

they look fantastic. especially your photo.

its exactly why i had to buy a couple of them myself

Depending on the kind of light you give it, it could be anywhere from mostly green to mostly red.

It sits on my windowsill which catches direct sunlight for several hours, and as that's fading I move it to another window which catches about an hour more.

And as the plant matures, they do seem to get the red-on-green look more readily.

Cool, that's what I wanted to know.

It is a very healthy plant, and I'm excited about watching it establish itself!