FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hi all!
About 6 months ago, I got a Mexican butterwort - P. 'Tehuacan'. Though a pretty plant, it soon started making weird leaves that were not the same. They were not curved and had were more broad. It had carnivorous leaves I believe. Though I've read up on dormancy, I haven't seen anything like this before. What do you guys make of it?

Here is a pic:

It is a little difficult to see, but it reminds me of my P. Laueana as it started coming out of dormancy last spring. You can check if the leaves are carnivorous by gently running a finger over one, if it feels particularly sticky or "buttery" (hence the name butterwort) then it is a carnivorous leaf, if it feels smooth without any form of lubricant then it is a succulent leaf and the plant is in dormancy.

What conditions is it kept in? What soil mixture/photoperiod/watering schedule does it have? If it is at all possible to get a clearer photograph that would be awesome but if not we'll see what we can find out with what we currently have.

I felt the leaves and they felt sort of buttery. I also noticed the little hairs. The only thing that bothered me was that the leaves came out almost right after I got it. Does this indicate a lack of light? Especially because it lost its pink color relatively quickly. I will put on a better picture soon.

It may well be lack of light. What type of light is it receiving (sunlight, artificial etc?) and how long is the plant subjected to it? Lower light levels are normal during winter but there could be something else underlying.

It is receiving an uneven amount of light. I have it under a desk light, but hope to upgrade to a bigger plant light soon. Considering the plant is green, it's probably the light, but I will upload a better pic soon.

Desk lights usually have incandescent bulbs which are too warm for carnivorous plants and don't have the right colour spectrum. The best thing you could do right now is probably place it on a windowsill until you can get the correct spectrum lighting; LEDs (light emitting diodes) or fluorescent lighting would be better than an incandescent.

The frustrating thing is I don't know all that much about artificial lighting. If you go for fluorescent it should have a colour temperature of 6500k and for a single plant I'm not sure of the wattage... There are a few topics scattered on the forums about various types of artificial lighting, I'll link you to a few. Hopefully they'll prove useful.

http://www.flytrapcare.com/phpBB3/led-g ... t8359.html
http://www.flytrapcare.com/phpBB3/fluor ... 13785.html

Personally I prefer to use sunlight as it's easier for my own needs (and the plants don't complain) but do what you think is better, I hope the plant perks up soon!

The bulb us fluorescent, is that okay?

I Grow a lot of my plants under fluorescent lights.
The lights are about 6" away and they get really nice coloring.

If you want a bulb for your lamp you should get thishttp://www.menards.com/main/lighting-fa ... c-7478.htm it is a compact fluorescent bulb.
I'd keep the compact fluorescent bulb about 6-7 inches away from the plant.


I have A pic of some pings under my lights.
Sorry it is a little blurry.
You can see what my P. Laueana looks like.

Hope it helps!

Those are gorgeous, plantman! Thank you for the bulb recommendation.

what amazing plants! They totally rock! I think my butterwort (subject of topic) might be getting ready to flower soon! If so, can I take cuttings from the flower stalks?

Thanks,
Kbud

P.S. To Grey: i'll upload more pics soon!

I'm not sure if flower cuttings work to be honest. It's something I've been meaning to try but medical stuff has been getting in the way of me doing anything "out of the ordinary". I know you can take leaves and get sprouts from those, though.

Looking forward to the photos.

Hope to see pics !

I'll look it up and report back:)

I've checked and it appears flower stalk cuttings are possible!