FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

While looking for some shelving and tulip/hyacinth bulbs today at Lowe's, I saw a little display w/ some venus fly traps and pitcher plants. Thinking that I need some indoor plants for the winter months to keep me busy, I bought a fly trap and took cash advance online for it. We're dealing w/ stinkbugs and flies invading our apartment for winter refuge, so I thought maybe this would help a little bit.

So I have like zero background info on these, other than they get the nutrients they can't get through the soil by eating insects. The one I picked up is like maybe 2" high, w/ 3 traps ranging in size of 1/4"-3/4". It's in a tiny little 2"x2"x2" container filled w/ some kind of dirt. The only instruction on the package was to keep 6"-4' from a window or fluorescent light, and keep above 40 degrees F.

After a quick look around the net it seems like they like high humidity. High humidity doesn't happen here in the NE much over the winter, which means I'll need to keep it under glass/plastic, which would totally negate the insect eating trait I was hoping for. It also looks like they can't eat bugs that are bigger then the traps, bacteria get inside the rotting bug and cause the trap to rot. I'm guessing that means they won't be eating the stink bugs any time soon either.

So anyone with any experience with these plants, toss me a couple tips please? Should I be transplating it soon?

Sadly the Venus flytrap will not help if you give it a dormancy. Venus flytraps wither require a winter dormancy or constant feeding and fertilization. Don’t fertilizer before researching more about it. I would report it in a 50/50 mix of peat moss and perlite, make sure they have no added nutrients(no miracle gro products). You can also buy some premixed potting soil on Amazon, eBay, or Etsy. They don’t require high humidity, they just appreciate it. If you can I would slowly acclimate it to the brightest spot you can outside. I would recommend transplanting it in the winter when it is dormant.

This ^^^^^^^

Oh, and welcome. Venus flytraps are a gateway drug. Before you know it you will be skulking through seedy nurseries looking for a rare nepenthes.

Panman wrote: ↑Sat Sep 12, 2020 2:56 pm Oh, and welcome. Venus flytraps are a gateway drug. Before you know it you will be skulking through seedy nurseries looking for a rare nepenthes.

I can confirm that this is true. I saw a Venus flytrap and and wanted one a few years ago... now I’m going insane if I don’t get at least 1 plant a month