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Temperatire Control

As most of you now know, my terrarium will have a few different species of sundews, a few vft's and hopefully soon a purple pitcher plant. My terrarium is steadily at about 70 degrees F. Is this warm enough? If it's not, is there an easy and inexpensive way to regulate temp? Moving the tank closer to a window is not an option as I have pets and children. The only place it can go is where it's already at!
All help is appreciated, thanks!
 
Hi,
You will want to think about dormancy, assuming you live in the Northern hemisphere, your purple pitcher plant and venus flytrap needs cool or cold conditions this winter, ie well below 70 and more like 35 to 45f in good light. Where doi you live?
 
Hi Mike,

I live in Alberta, Canada. The the temps in fall and winter are pretty cold, anywhere from +10 (fall) to average -25 (winter). Hence the indoor terrarium. I have a plan for dormancy I think. I have an unheated laundry room with a window and I am currently studying the temp by the window to see if it will be sufficient for dormancy.
My concern is normal periods, when they aren't in dormancy. I'm just not sure if the 70 degrees is a comfortable average temp for vft's and sundews to live in the majority of the time. If not, is there a good way to regulate the warmth in there?
Thanks for the help Mike!
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hmmm...Difficult that one, your temperature ranges are more extreme than us in the UK. Anyone out there who has had success with growing VFT in a terrarium with success?
 
I have several VFTs, a Sarracenia purpurea, Sarracenia rubra, and 5 butterworts in a terrarium. They have been growing for 1 3/4 years. I put the terrarium in a cooler location ( 50° F ) during the winter months. Last winter, the plants slowed down in growth, but did have leaves the entire winter. I have used this method in the past ( 10 + years ago ) with success. I re-started my collection with the terrarium mentioned above.

http://hubben.crosswinds.net/cps/ This will show you the terrarium.

Nick
 
Well, there is other Canadians on this forum, but I don't think any of them live in Alberta (that I know of?) which is a lot more tempermental weather wise than places like BC and what-not. I'm the only person I know who is attempting to terrarium-grow VFT's in Alberta. Other than that there is just the typical garden centers that occassionally stock them, but know nothing about them!
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I can boast that in my terrarium (which is in my livingroom), I have managed to successfully maintain a humidity level of 75-80%, and the temp does not dip below 70 degrees. But is that warm enough to support my CP's overall?
 
These conditions are fine for all but the VFT. A friend in Brazil grows the plant outside all year. Growth slows during the cool winter there, but the plants return to full growth each spring. One of the largest considerations is the photo period which should be 11 hrs or less.
 
11 hours or less refers to during the dormancy, right? Currently I have the lights in my terrarium set to come on at 7 and go off at 9:30. So the plants I have in there now are getting 14 1/2 hours a day of light. I was planning on gradually reducing this when it comes time to prepare the VFT's for dormancy.
I'm adding a third light as soon as my husband is done building the new light fixture/lid for the tank (not a complete lid, just basically my own home-made light fixture). Is it the temp then that won't work for them, and if so, do you have any easy, inexpensive ideas ffor regulating the temp. in my terrarium? Thanks!
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What about using a cup warmer set inside my terrarium to up the temp on the colder days?
 
  • #10
At Pets mart they have these pads that stick to the bottom of your tank that are heaters. You could use one of those. they are pretty inexpensive. You need to have a way to circulate air underneath the tank though. You could put the tank up on shelving with a hole cut into the shelf and run a small fan under there. that's what I was planning on doing for winter for my tropicals. The other thing they have is lamps that shine no light and jsut give off heat they come in all sorts of sizes. A little more expensive though. COuld come out cheaper after all the shelving and fans though.
 
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