FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hello again. One question. If I wanted to grow a VFT with its roots sitting in water (aerated or not) only, Are there any suitable additives that would allow it to grow and thrive without feeding it?

I've grown hydroponic VFTs in an aerogarden type of setup. I added pH-down (phosphoric acid) to lower the pH. They will grow, but not thrive.

I have all of my VFT's in dead LFSM. I had considered live, which I still might switch to. I have some live red moss that some would look quite cool in.

50:50 peat and perlite. comes off VERY easily during repotting season. LFSM is a royal PITA to remove when repotting. Never again for me.

Sorry I mean just aqueous I guess Ty tho I do use this mix for my regulars outside

I don't think there's any liquid you can pot a Venus flytrap in that will allow you to not feed it. They get nearly all their nutrients for growing from the bugs they eat, and trying to substitute nutrients in the media instead will simply kill the plant. The best you're likely to manage is "alive".

You could try foliar feeding, but I'm not sure that's any easier than feeding the traps normally.

Flytraps can take nutrients from the media; the problem is anaerobic bacteria will kill the plants faster than they can absorb the nutrients. Flytraps have not adapted to anaerobic conditions the way bog plants have.

A couple ideas I had when building hydroponic setups:

- UV-C light filter. This is often used in aquariums to sanitize the water without replacing it.
- Very cold water. Place frozen water bottles in the media and replace as needed.

But flytraps are small plants. It's cheaper/easier grow them in tissue culture than hydroponics.