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Some questions....

I have read that the tray method for watering is best for carnivorous plants. I have mine in a terrarium and am wondering if that's ok to use top watering and if that is as effective. I suppose I could cut holes in the bottom of my terrarium, but I kind of would rather not do that. I put about an inch and a half of perlite on the bottom of it and so far have only had to water it once......it's only been about four days since I put them in there.

Also, I used some SUPERthrive to reduce the shock of transplanting. Is it wise to use SUPERthrive every time I water? Or could too much cause stress on the plant?

I read that the growth point should be above the dirt and part of the bulb should be showing. Is it kind of touchy where that is at or doesn't it matter that much? I have always had mine a little deeper down, and it looks funny to me that it is that much above the soil.

Also (last question)
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It is starting to grow stalks for the flowers. I read that you should cut them off for the best growth for the plant. Is it best for you to cut it off so it's as short as possible?

Thanks!

- Joel
 
The terranium is tottaly unnessesry. Take it out of the terranium and put it on a tray system. Try not to water it from above. One of the most famous myths is that VFTs come from a place with high humidity(which they dont), so dont put it in a terranium.
 
i have mine in a terrarium and they do fine,
 
But its completely unnesecery. A typical VFT enviroment is an open grassland with a lake. VFts grow near the lake in an open area, so there is not much humidity
 
Mine grows on a windowsill on a tray system. Its producing lots of traps. So I dont see why you need a terranium.
 
It might not be necessary but it seems like from all that I have heard and read that they do like somewhat higher humidity levels. I was just wondering if it made a big difference top watering instead of the tray method. Thanks for the comments.

- Joel
 
higher humidity encourages better growth, but like all things, it should be taken in moderation. to high humidity will rot the plants, so keep that in mind, the only prob with VFT in terrarium, as well as many other plants, is
1: they need dormancy,
2: they love sun, and if in a terrarium, it wont bring out their best traits(unless u have strong lights like sodium halides or numerous flourescents, or grow them very closely to them), so u may never see your VFT at its all time best
Thats my say on it,
Hellz
 
Higher humidity levels? Thats a myth. If the humidity is high, it will lead to weak, spindly growth. There is not much humidity where they grow in the wild.
 
So far I have not had any grow lights at all. Just let the sun shine in on it
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The terrarium is one I bought on this website, it's bowl shaped with a hole in the top.
 
  • #10
I know which one you mean.
 
  • #11
high humidity won't actually hurt the plants. When was the last time you saw an mid atlantic state that had a low humidity summer? Humidity will not negatively effect the vft. I have all mine outside in N. VA and it is humid as all get out up here right now. 90%+ much of the time, and it will be like that more times then not over the summer. One thing that you need to find out is what works for you, not someone else. I know that this is weird and a bit hard once you start out, but it proves to be invaluable. Actually planting the plants in the terrarium may not be the best route to go. You can do it, but it seems to be more work. Tamlin recommended to me to make for more room and use of my lights, to turn the terrarium on its side. This way the plants are closer to the lights and you have more room. Now, you'll do this with the plants still potted. It also allows for removal for whatever reason of the plant if something goes wrong or you want to try something. Hope this helps.
 
  • #12
From my experience Venus Flytraps do best Outside.  A small terrainium is a good temporary home for them, especially when they are experiencing shipping shock.  But for long term I find that after awhile stagnant air gets the best of the plants and they start going down hill from there.  The first signs of that are the plants making smaller traps and slower growth.  Then root rot sets in and the plants starts to die.  
The most impotant thing to do is to have moving air.  That's why a big terrainium like a ten gallon fish tank isn't bad, even though the plants still grow their best outside.  That is why plants in the wild don't rot when the humidity is constantly 90+%, because there is always some sorce of aircirculation blowing over the plants.  
The main problems with the small 1 gallon fish tanks is there is no opening for fresh air.  
Most people including me suggest leaving at least a 10 percent oppening in the terrainium for fresh air to flow in.  Another option I've heard is to put in a small motor to act like a fan to circulate over the plants.  This rule goes for all plants including MOST nepenthes, there are exceptions though...  For constant humididty levels I reccommend a constant 65+% at all times to produce best growth.  They can take levels much lower with out any ill effects but the growth wont be as big and the overall plant growth isn't as robust.
 
  • #13
I'm not sure if my VFT would do as well outside here in North Dakota. Strong winds and lower humidity. Plenty of food though
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I have 5 plants in the terrarium.....3 venus fly traps and two sundews. I have read that they have slightly different.......but still similar needs for watering and dormancy. I just transplanted them on monday ( june 7th ), so I don't know if I should transplant them again this early. Would you guys recommend that I plant them in pots? Or try turning the terrarium on it's side? That seems like it would be pretty tough to do since they are all planted in there already. But I could try it. It does make sense to find out what works for me mcrwt644. Thanks guys for the suggestions and comments.
 
  • #14
Well, alot depends on the condition of the plants right now. I don't know if I would go and transplant them again so soon, but that is a decision you will have to make for yourself since you are the one that can actually see them. I have found in this 'obsession' of cps, that there are two things that are valuable beyone belief
1-find what works for you
2-be patient
I have killed more plants by not being patient, and even at 30, find it hard to do sometimes. I now force myself to leave the plant alone unless I know for a fact that it will do better, or be alright in what I plan to do with it. Case in point-d. capensis are very tolerant of just about everything. This is how I transplant them out of one container to another...I weed them out, gently of course, but just pull them out and repot them. Hey, found it works for me, and causes the plants no ill harm. IF you repot them, I like about a 60/40 peat sand mix. Sand is good for somethings, and somethings are better then sand. some people like perlite over sand, and vice versa. It depends on what you like. Again, good luck.
 
  • #15
I had my VFT in a former plastic pretzel container. At first I covered it at night. I thought i was doing it a favor by leaving the lid on 24/7. that resulted in smaller traps and some of them turned black before maturing. So I got rid of the lid. The traps plant recovered from my mistake and grew larger traps. Mine ar all open tray. Until recently they were kept inside the lab, which is a very dry environment. Apparently, open tray was good enough in an otherwise dry environment. However, North Carolina IS a high humidity state as is the whole Southeast / eastern seaboard. They DO require humidity, but air circulation was the big factor. In nature they are not covered.
 
  • #16
VFT'S will do okay in lower humidity, but experts I've heard from say a humidity around 80 percent seem to be optimum.

The thing that hurts them is shock; if you have them in a terrarium and take them out in the open tray system without acclimating them to it, they will suffer, same thing vice versa.

vft's are adaptable to an appreciable degree, but like all plants, should be acclimated when a change of environment is necessary.
 
  • #17
In my case they seem to be suffering a little shock. I didn't change their environment, just the soil. I've had this terrarium for about a year now. I thought you were supposed to plant them in peat moss, sand, and some potting soil. I know now that venus fly traps don't like potting soil. So now I repotted it and while I was at it, ordered a couple sundews to go in there with them. So the only shock they are suffering right now is that they were out of dirt for a while. And I suppose the soil is different now too. But I did give them some SUPERThrive, so hopefully that will help them out a little bit. They have been planted for about a week now, and they look alot better, but they still don't seem to be growing as fast as usual. Hopefully that will get back to normal, or better!
 
  • #18
As several people have said, you do not HAVE to have VFTs in a terrarium if you are going for high humidity. They don't need it the way some other CPs do. One of the problems with terrariums is air circulation. As long as you have good air cirulation in the tank, they should be ok. Without that, you will get mold and fungus eventually. Also you can get heat build-up in the tank if the sun is shining on it.

If you have your plants potted and in a saucer or tray and kept wet, you shouldn't have humidity issues. I've found my VFTs do much better potted and kept outdoors where they are closer to what's natural enviroment for them.

But you CAN grow them in a terrarium if you like.
 
  • #19
My brother had a venus fly trap that seemed to love humidity. He had 3" domed pot on it, and kept the cover on, and kept it in the sun. It got too big for the domed pot fairly quickly, and then he bought a large clear glass vase to cover it. He left the vase covering the plant and humidity built up quite a bit. The plant grew to be huge! I don't think it even had much air flow at all in there. So.......like has been mentioned earlier, you just have to find out what works for you.
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