FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

if my trap turns black and dies i have picked up you have to cut it off? is this right? also i would like to know (if that is true) which part to cut e.g. just before the black dead part, the whole stem or just below the dead part. my trap is not quite black yet but is not closing and very stiff and discoloured.

Most find it better to just cut off the black or brown parts, as the green parts still provide the plant energy.

You don't have to clean up the dead traps, many people choose to because it makes the plant look nicer. Like tc3driver said, don't cut off anything that's green as it can still be helpful to the plant. I usually don't pick off any leaves until the entire trap/leaf has died off.

Same here. I never trim off anything that isn't black, but I might take off the black half of a leaf and leave the rest if it's still green, or remove the trap but leave the leaf, etc.
Also, it's probably best to cut the black stuff off with scissors, instead of pulling it. Sometimes even a totally black leaf can still be attached to the rhizome so firmly that you could actually uproot the plant by pulling on it.