FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hey everyone!
I'm just super curious, if you feed live crickets to a Nepenthes, or any cp for that matter, will the cricket be able to eat it's way out of the trap thus damaging the plant?
I'm considering buying them for feeding to my cp's but this is a concern i'm having.

Also, if you have any better options i'm all ears

Thanks in advance
Matt

I squish em so they're still slightly alive for plants like drosera and dionaea. For neps, just crush the head with forceps. It'll die.

Crickets are actually quite fun to keep and breed, if you are patient enough and have a strong nose.

@hungry carnivores, Thanks for the info! I'll try that and see how it goes

Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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My flytraps eat small crickets with ease. Big crickets are a bit too "meaty", and it usually doesn't end well for the trap.

The inside of a pitcher is so slippery that crickets won't be able to climb out. Then again, the cricket doesn't have to move for a Nepenthes, so there's no harm (for the plant, anyway) to kill the crickets first and then drop them in.

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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I think one of my neighbors has one of those. Any idea if Gypsy moths are good for plants and won’t eat their way out? They are invasive and make web-like nests in trees.

sanguinearocks101 wrote:

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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I think one of my neighbors has one of those. Any idea if Gypsy moths are good for plants and won’t eat their way out? They are invasive and make web-like nests in trees.

No, silk worms are their own breed and are no longer found in the wild. I raise them indoors. Gypsy moths are obnoxious. I'm not sure about nutrients for them. But separating worm from web is difficult. Honestly, i just get gloves on and rip the nest out. It goes right into the active fire pit. They destroy everything.

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Literally just caught a live cricket in my house right after I read this thread

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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i've got silkworm eggs if anyone wants some

uxleumas wrote:

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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i've got silkworm eggs if anyone wants some

You raise silkworms?! What color?

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I used to use juvenile crickets for my flytrap. Big ones are just too large and strong a lot of the time.

hungry carnivores wrote:Crickets are actually quite fun to keep and breed, if you are patient enough and have a strong nose.

Crickets are fun, but I am trying mealworms right now. Mealworms typically are simpler to keep than crickets. Plus, they don't give off much of a smell.

Cross wrote: ↑Fri Sep 04, 2020 3:43 pm

uxleumas wrote:

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders. That's a memory I can never seem to forget. You ever thought about silk worms? Super nutritious. If you have a mulberry tree that's all you need. If not, you only need a little bit of food. Takes about 2 weeks from hatch to be plant sized.

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i've got silkworm eggs if anyone wants some

You raise silkworms?! What color?

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i used to raise silkworms (with white, orange, and pink silk) but i think i may have killed the eggs by putting them in the fridge

uxleumas wrote:

Cross wrote: ↑Fri Sep 04, 2020 3:43 pm

uxleumas wrote: i've got silkworm eggs if anyone wants some

You raise silkworms?! What color?

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i used to raise silkworms (with white, orange, and pink silk) but i think i may have killed the eggs by putting them in the fridge

No, the fridge puts them in hibernation and simulates natural growth patterns for hatching. I'm only raising regular white right not. I cannot find colored worms anywhere.

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Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders.
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Let me guess - Australia?

Ben Goudge wrote:

Cross wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2020 1:45 am Crickets are nasty. They can eat anything, including venomous spiders.
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Let me guess - Australia?

No, northeast Pennsylvania lol.

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