Venus Fly Trap

(Dioneae)

The Venus Fly Trap is native to the bogs of North and South Carolina. This highly evolved plant uses a mechanical action to catch its prey. The traps produces a reddish color inside the leaf, and secretes a scent that attracts insects. Inside the traps are trigger hairs. To close a trap, these trigger hairs need to be touched twice. This prevents the constant opening and closing that would occur during periods of rain. Once an insect is caught, the Venus Fly Trap will close tightly around its meal and begin digesting it.

Most commonly asked question: “Can I feed my Venus Fly trap hamburger meat?”

No! Their fast food preferences are common flies and insects. Hamburger meat is too fatty for a Venus Fly trap. It is best to feed them insects. If you prefer, you can use general purpose fertilizer once a month at 1/3 strength.

How to keep your Venus Fly Trap healthy!

Light: Dioneae requires an area with as much humidity as possible. A terrarium is ideal. Select an area that has bright indirect light. Morning sun is usually okay, but watch for burning of foliage. Growing under Grow-Lux lamps is fine for 16 to 18 hours per day.

Temperature: Avoid humidity robbing drafts from heater and air conditioners. The ideal day temperature is between 65°F to 80°F degrees. Avoid excessive heat, even at night.

Watering: Dioneae should not be allowed to dry out. For best results use distilled water or rain water. Tap water with low salt content is acceptable provided water is allowed to stand overnight, to remove the chlorine. Although overwatering is difficult, sitting in water will cause the plant to rot.

Feeding: Never feed any processed meats, including hamburger. Meats are too fatty. Venus fly traps eat insects (which are low in cholesterol). Small flies and moths are the most easily digested by the fly trap. Hard shell insects such as beetles are more difficult to digest and are not recommended. If you want to fertilize your fly trap instead of feeding it , use a 20-20-20, 1/4 strength once a month. For those of you with orchids, you can also use your Pro Blend Orchid Food for convenience, again at 1/4 strength.

Transplanting: You can transplant your Venus Fly Trap with sphagnum moss, with a layer of perlite or gravel at the bottom of terrarium or pot. You should transplant every two years. It is best to transplant in the winter months when the plant is dormant.

Dormancy: Fly Traps normally go dormant when the day length shortens and temperatures cool down to 40°F-50°F. It is recommend that you place your plant in a cool area away from direct sun in the winter months, so the Dioneae can go dormant. A spot in the refrigerator is fine, just don't freeze. Your Venus Fly Trap will begin to start growing again in Mid-February to early March.

What to expect: A trap can only close three to four times before the leaf dies and turns black. As a bulb, new leaves will grow again. The speed in which the traps closes is based on temperature and light. Venus Fly Traps are an endangered species. We produce and sell only artificially propagated Dioneae plants. Fly traps flower in the spring producing one to eight flowers per stem.

Easy growing instructions for the kids:

They can keep the plant in it's original container. Remember to keep it moist and out of direct sunlight. Feed it a bug, ant or gnat every week, or not.

*We have a small selection of Dionaea 'Flexx' [P]. This is a patent plant and is protected by plant variety rights and it is prohibited to propagate.