FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hello all. I have a few CPs, but have questions about one VFT Dentate. As far as I can tell, it is only a few years old. I bought it about 9 months and have yet to repot it. I have read that repotting outside of its normal dormancy can harm the plant. Right now it is in a peat, perlite, and bark mix in a 3-4in pot. My main concern is that it has lost a good amount of soil over time as it has broken down and been rained on outdoors. It is still growing leaves and traps, but a few leaves also have definitely browned as it adjusts to its intense summer sun. I have read that CPs will brown and lose leaves as they adjust to more direct sunlight.

In the crazy summer heat of central NC where I live, I wonder if the combination of poor soil, soil loss, and a small container make it worth repotting to protect it from overheating. Otherwise, I have been doing bottom watering with a low water table using distilled water. The soil has been damp and I only refill the saucer every few days during this heatwave, only after it's sucked up the bit of water in its tray.

I have two juvenile Sarrs and a VFT 'Akai Ryu' in the same spot outside, similar water method. They are potted better in better soil and seem to be less affected by the heat.

In terms of protecting each planter from overheating, I've wrapped white plastic bags around the outside of the pots. I've felt a difference in the pot temperature after doing this.

Is it worth repotting my one CP now to lessen the effects of overheating? Or if it's still growing at all in low/poor soil, should I ignore the sunburned leaves and let it do its thing until January/February?

Side note: In the future I want to set up a bog container garden for these current plants and a few others. As of now, because of my concerns about repotting outside of dormancy, I'm waiting until late january/february to do this container garden. I have read that a larger container and more soil make it a bit less likely the plants will overheat, so hopefully this won't be a recurring issue. But is repotting during growing season more harmful than good?

Thanks for any help or ideas here!

It should be fine if you wait until dormancy, if you want to repot it now just take out the plant from the pot with the soil intact and transplant it into a bigger pot with new soil.

It's fine to repot now, but you must keep it out of the extreme heat and sun until it can settle in. After that you can gradually return it to the elements.

SarraceniaLover319 wrote:It should be fine if you wait until dormancy, if you want to repot it now just take out the plant from the pot with the soil intact and transplant it into a bigger pot with new soil.

Thanks SarraceniaLover319. I'm leaning toward letting it go until dormancy. None of the newest growth has burned yet and it's still sending up new leaves. I do like the idea for transplanting it with its existing soil though, that helps a lot going forward.

mouthstofeed wrote:It's fine to repot now, but you must keep it out of the extreme heat and sun until it can settle in. After that you can gradually return it to the elements.

Thanks mouthstofeed. I might wait this one out after all, but that's a good point about easing into more intense sunlight.

I like your username, Hey Arnold reference? If you're worried about the lost soil due to rain you can always put a different material on top of the peat thats a bit more resistant to being tossed around by heavy rain. I've used a layer of sphagnum moss before without a hitch on new divisions and they got on just fine with their new wreath of moss.

josephd2020 wrote:I like your username, Hey Arnold reference? If you're worried about the lost soil due to rain you can always put a different material on top of the peat thats a bit more resistant to being tossed around by heavy rain. I've used a layer of sphagnum moss before without a hitch on new divisions and they got on just fine with their new wreath of moss.

josephd2020 you know it! And that's a good point. I have one vft that came pre potted with a layer of lf sphagnum top soil and it seems to be enjoying that, definitely not losing soil much at all. When you say on new divisions without a hitch, you mean new growing points were able to push through the top layer of sphagnum moss?