FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Why have a had inconsistent results when using maxsea on sundew seedlings?

I've used very low (20-50PPM) dosages with positive and negative responses from temperate and south african sundew seedlings. First time fertilizing they respond positive. 2nd time fertilizing 2-3 weeks later is when they respond negatively.

POSITIVE- explosion of growth
NEGATIVE - the tentacles will curl, growth will stop, but maintain red coloring.

I always use a tiny paint brush to apply fert so it won"t drip into media. Distilled water is used.

Any feedback is much appreciated.

it's suggested to use 1/2 tablespoon of Maxsea per gallon of water (for regular plants it's 2 tbsp). after loads of online calcuations, I got that would be around 17 ppm. your 20-50 ppm would be way higher than suggested and while it may not kill it, It certaintly will if you spray it too often. i think you should fertilize once every month or so, so stop fertilizing for about 2 months (still feed them though if they have dew) and then you can use either a diluted solution, or use the solution you have right now, but use once each few months. i suggest using a diluted solution though.

I've never experienced any adverse effects with maxsea with sundew seedlings. I've drip fed baby dielsianas that popped up around the mother plant with maxsea in a syringe and nothing bad has come of it.