FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

i was wondering if it would be alright to leave my VFT under artificial light constantly. Would this then cause a problem for going into dormancy?

you can leave it in artificial light, make sure it is strong enough so that the plant will get energy from it.
just take the plant away from the light when going through dormancy.
you really should go through dormancy or you plant might die

Move the light a little further away, not much and shorten the photoperiod with a timer or something.
Slow the watering just keeping it damp. They will have green all Winter long, but growth will slow and the leaves will be rosetted with smaller traps, perhaps. Photoperiod is more important than temperature, but having a cooler place will also help. Moving the light further away might do this.

In the Spring, move the light closer and increase the photoperiod again; say 14 hours or more over time and there You go.
I've done this for 12 years and haven't lost any this way; can't say the same for chucking them in the fridge.

You better have them in the fridge if You move them completely out of light or it is a death sentence.
Refrigeration is DEEP dormancy and is the ONLY time they need absolutely no light, ample Fungicide but no light. If You are keeping them just slightly cooler, then LET THERE BE LIGHT!

gage wrote:i was wondering if it would be alright to leave my VFT under artificial light constantly. Would this then cause a problem for going into dormancy?

What do you mean constantly? It's best to let your plant experience a somewhat natural dormancy period if possible. If you put it under artificial lighting, you're going to have to try to keep the photoperiod in sync with the sunrise and sunset and also regulate the temperature. It's going to be easier to allow your plant to go dormant naturally.

Matt is right.. Well, if you keep you're plant under "constant" light it will sooner or later harm the plant.

Allen,

by constantly i mean never turning it off and having the light on the plant for 24 hours a day but im getting a feeling that i should just turn it on and off when the sun goes up and down

gage wrote:im getting a feeling that i should just turn it on and off when the sun goes up and down

That's probably the best way to keep the plant's internal clock right. If you're trying to "speed grow" your plant, you could try leaving the light on 24 hours a day. I read somewhere else that someone did that with Sarracenias and they had really nice large plants after 2 years.

Of course, any time you do something that isn't what mother nature intended, you run the risk of killing the plant.

gage wrote:by constantly i mean never turning it off and having the light on the plant for 24 hours a day but im getting a feeling that i should just turn it on and off when the sun goes up and down

You can get timers at Lowe's for about 12 bucks - they go between the light plug and the outlet; you can set it to automatically turn on and off at say, 11pm and 9am, respectively for example. That's easier than doing it manually.

Definitely make sure you give them a dormancy period though; they only live about 3 years without. Shorten the photoperiod and reduce the temp (put it closer to a window for example).

ok thanks for all of the info