Venus Flytrap
The Venus Flytrap is the only carnivorous plant of it’s type. It’s native habitat is in the Carolinas of the eastern U. S. It grows in bog areas that are acidic with no nutrients. By catching and digesting insects and other small invertebrate it is able to obtain the nutrients it needs to thrive. The plants are dormant in the winter and do not produce new traps or produce them only very slowly. In the spring and summer the plant grow many new traps. Once the plants reach a certain age they usually flower each year in the spring. The Venus Flytrap must have a dormant winter period or it will slowly decline and usually die.
Method Used to Capture Prey
Venus Flytraps are fascinating because of the active traps that can actually catch flys. The trap has two halfs that are hinged on one side. The open side has quarter inch spines or stiff hairs which form a barrier when closed. Inside the trap there are 3 “trigger” hairs on each half. In order to trigger the closing mechanism the prey must touch at least two hairs or one of the hairs twice. This helps prevent accidental closings which use up a lot of energy. If the hairs are not triggered again once the trap closes, it will re-open. If the trap has caught an actual insect the struggle will cause it to touch the hairs causing the trap to closes even tighter. The spines prevent the insect from escaping during this struggle. The plant begins to digest the insect at this point by releasing digestive enzymes. The nutrients from the insect are absorbed by the plant, providing it all it needs to grow and thrive. It will take 4 to 6 days for the trap to finish the process and re-open.
Growing Venus Flytraps
These plants need as much direct sunlight as possible. If grown indoors place them in a south facing window. If you do grow the plant indoors don’t forget that they must have a cold, dormant period in the winter. A mix of one part peat moss and one art sand (make sure the sand does not have lime in it)or perlite is an ideal growing medium. DO NOT grow in regular potting soil as it may contain nutrients which will harm or kill the plant. This means you do not fertilize! The plant gets it’s nutrients from the prey it captures. The container should be plastic as clay pots absorb salts or minerals that may leach back into the soil. Place the container in a tray or saucer with about 1/2 inch of water. Rain water is best or distilled water. It is not the chlorine in tap water that is the problem, it is the minerals so the most important thing is to NOT use hard water. I use the water from a de-humidifier or the condensation from an air conditioner unit. Although it’s tempting to trigger the traps this should be kept to a minimum as it uses a lot of energy. If you want to feed the plant use live insects not hamburger or other scraps of food! You can trim off dead, brown traps. If the plant produces a flower stalk you may want to trim it off as it uses a lot of energyto produce the flower and seed.