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Fertilizer

  • #21
I haven't ever been able to grow them well. Eventually I put them in the bog and they really, really took off. For some reason I can't grow them potted like everthing else.
 
  • #22
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  • #23
Dead plant sitting. In time, in time.
 
  • #24
those are its summer leaves.... it has its seasons all mixed up.
Alex
 
  • #25
Syx, does your plants produce normal sized traps when not fertilized? VFT's shouldn't need fertilization to produce normal sized traps. The plant in the last picture doesn't look too bad, but it noticebly lacks something. It looks very green in the 2nd picture. In the first picture you gave, if you look carefully the plant has some old traps that have red margins, but the new growth in that picture is quite green. This suggests that light levels have been reduced. Also, the usual pattern for a red trapped VFT as it approaches dormancy is to deepen the red in the traps if grown in good lighting. Can you please describe your growing conditions like humidity, water level in the tray,type of water,temperature, and most importantly amount of light? How long have you had the plant? There are too many things that could affect its growth so I wouldn't act so fast as to say stick in the fridge and all will work out.
 
  • #26
well...I am happy that I have finally been able to grow VFT's well so far...and especially inside a  terrarium at a measly setup. I am truly well satisfied with the look of my  plants and results so far. I have tried dormancy with older plants that come out by the end of this month...I have young plants off TC that have skipped dormancy this year......I feed my plants with pet store crickets and wax worms once every month.....my plants traps are amazingly responsive.....I see a right leaf shape......good decent quality plant.

I guess glider, JLP and everyone knows that I started off with soo many questions of how to successfully grow VFT's. Some ppl said they were hard...some ppl say VFT's are easy. According my my experience so far.....they are probably the easiest of CP's. They are very responsive to environment and show u anything they find uncomfortable immediately (around 2-3 weeks ;)).

I guess all I want to say is....VFT's aren't impossible. They are worth a shot....and they will always have a close place to my heart as one of the best examples of "Nature at its best".

My next project in maybe a year and a half will be with nepenthes. and especially my most favourite plant....my holy grail...the nepenthes rajah worth 70$ at hawaiian botanicals. (my only source).


 
  • #27
Looks good!
 
  • #28
Thanks JLP. I guess its good to show that VFT's are not impossible. They just like most other CP's have a short comfort window.
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Well..obviously d.capensis is on a league of its own ;)
 
  • #29
nice plants. I'm assuming that's the same 'B52' plant that is on the pic on your site?
 
  • #30
I'm jealous Vraev!
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Your plants look great. Keep up the good work!
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  • #31
[b said:
Quote[/b] (uglypho @ Jan. 03 2007,7:22)]Syx, does your plants produce normal sized traps when not fertilized? VFT's shouldn't need fertilization to produce normal sized traps. The plant in the last picture doesn't look too bad, but it noticebly lacks something. It looks very green in the 2nd picture. In the first picture you gave, if you look carefully the plant has some old traps that have red margins, but the new growth in that picture is quite green. This suggests that light levels have been reduced. Also, the usual pattern for a red trapped VFT as it approaches dormancy is to deepen the red in the traps if grown in good lighting. Can you please describe your growing conditions like humidity, water level in the tray,type of water,temperature, and most importantly amount of light? How long have you had the plant? There are too many things that could affect its growth so I wouldn't act so fast as to say stick in the fridge and all will work out.
Yes, I think it is too green. But the sun is very hot in surabaya, the surface temperature may reach over 40 degree Celsius and direct sunlight may burn the leaf. I use shade net temporary when it is clear weather.
Before I give it amino acid solution, the traps were very small (about 10 mm) with large petiolates. After treatment, in one week the new traps has 15-17 mm length. Maybe I need to give phenylalanine to stimulate anthocyanin production.
 
  • #32
Hello Syx,

I'm looking at the climate and weather reports for Surabaya Indonesia, I see your tough situation. The temperatures look consistently high and compounded with high humidity can cause problems for the plants. However it is true that the summer months in Wilmington are similar to your climate. I've seen the weather reports for Wilmington and the temps during the summers are up in the 90's and dew point up to 74 degrees F, similar to your climate. So VFT's actually can tolerate pretty high temps.

I do have a suggestion for your VFT. I've heard quite successful yearound cultivation of VFT's in Singapore by at least 2 growers. One of them has been doing this for 5 years. The key to growing the plant in Singapore year round was to reduce the amount of water in the tray. It seems that saturated VFT soil in hot humid conditions cause bacterial growth and overheats the plant. These Singapore growers grow their plants outdoors in nearly full exposure. I'm not sure how much water you are giving the plant, but you can try lessening the amount.
 
  • #33
The reason I discourage dormancy as the sole solution, is because we aren't you. We don't know the actual growing conditions, only you do. There are a million variables. It is very worthwhile to try tweak lighting, watering, or soil variable, and see if the plant could be healthier. I've only heard of one person actually claiming his plants died from dormancy deprivation, and from what he said, it took ten years. I think it's a lot more sensible to go through the basic environment conditions for your VFT to see what the plant's current performance is related to before even considering dormancy, for changing something like watering and lighting is instant, and if the changes are favorable, the plant will respond quickly. Here is something to think about: putting an unhealthy VFT in a refrigerator will result in taking out an unhealthy VFT from the refrigerator. All the refrigerator does is slow down the growing process. It doesn't miraculously boost the health of a VFT. The only case I can think of is if the plant was infested with a pest, and after refrigeration the pest was completely killed off. Important environmental factors make a more direct impact on current plant growth. Better lighting actually makes the plant photosynthesize better and therefore grow and develope stronger.

As for you supplementing your plant with amino acids, it seems to get the plant going. Keep in mind however that well grown VFT's shouldn't need supplements to produce normal size traps. After everyone giving you advice I still haven't heard your thoughts on why you think your plant can't perform ok without supplements. Please keep us updated, and sorry if you have fallen asleep after reading my post.
 
  • #34
Bah!!!

VTF's aren't made for terraniums or tropical conditions! They are made for full sun, outdoor wetness! This also includes a time to go dormant and rest!

Keeping a VFT inside a terranium will only produce weak plants with the tendency to rot from too much humidity!
 
  • #35
phong, thank you for your kind attention and information. I bought vft from a nursery in bogor. they claimed that their vfts do not have dormancy time anymore.

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water in tray is kept below 1 cm in depth. the major problem is not bacterial growth but fungi! I found a lot under the dead leaves. I have prevent fungal attack using thiophanate methyl.
I just want to know what if I try to apply amino acid solution as in my nepenthes. it works in nepenthes, why don't it work in vft? so, a few drops of amino acid in the traps is applied to vft trap and find the new traps have normal size than before. I still feed them with amino acid solution though the vft can capture its prey by itself.
Shade-net had been removed and I wait for the effect!
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  • #36
one thing I learnt from my past 4 months of experience is that VFT's take time to show effect. It might take atleast 2-3 months to see the REAL effect if a VFT likes or has accustomed to its environment. Let me tell you now that if I had the chance..i would love to keep my VFT's in the sun...outside grown VFT's are always the best looking ones.
 
  • #37
Just earlier in the thread Vraev you wrote this.
[b said:
Quote[/b] (vraev @ Jan. 06 2007,10:18)]According my my experience so far.....they are probably the easiest of CP's. They are very responsive to environment and show u anything they find uncomfortable immediately (around 2-3 weeks ;)).
I'm not sure your're saying 2 to 3 weeks or 2 to 3 months. Vraev, in your pics you seem to being giving them favorable terrarium conditions, your plants are growing strongly.
 
  • #38
Syx, removing the shade will definitely give them better lighting. May I ask what percent shade your cloth provides? If you notice burns when your plant is taking in full sun, then move it to some shade. Start slowly. Maybe give it direct light for an hour the first day, then slowly increase 30 minutes a day. It should fully acclimatize in about a week or two. Keep us updated.
 
  • #39
ooh...the 2-3 weeks is to see a growth response....HOWEVER, 2-3 months is the ACTUAL time period to see how a VFT has acclaimatised to your growing conditions. In my case...it was 2-3 weeks before I saw a new opened trap. It was 3 months before I saw the plant grow with atleast 6 new traps in total. So there is truth in both those stats ..atleast for me.
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  • #40
wow uglypho...I just saw your site...wow....you have a wicked collection of VFT's. Amazing plants dude.
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