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Need advice quick or my vft is a gonner

  • #21
The tap water here in Kansas must be okay, I've been using it to water my VFT and it has grown two new leaves with small traps forming on the ends in the last week. So the tap water here must be within the VFTs mineral tolerance level.
 
  • #22
Don't be so quick to decide if your tap water is OK. It takes time for minerals to build up in the soil. If you water by the tray method and let the water evaporate before adding more water, mineral build-up can become a problem and eventually the mineral accumulation will kill the plant. If you water from the top and let the water run through the pot, mineral build-up will be slower because some of the accumulated minerals get flushed from the soil.

Unless you get a water quality report that shows very low mineralization in your tap water, use rain water or distilled water. I have used tap water from the Humboldt Bay District (California) for decades. I usually let the tap water sit in an open container for a day so the chlorine can gas-off. The hardness of this water ranges from 72-89 mg CaCO3/L and sodium is 4.4 ppm. This has been OK for long-term use on my plants, but when I water I flood the pot and let excess drainage run onto the ground. In addition, every spring I repot my plants and discard the old soil.
 
  • #23
Keep in mind that bad water kills the roots of the plant first, not the leaves, so if the leaves are just starting to show stress, your plant's roots could have already rotted away. Plants don't metabolize quite as fast as most animals, so our common sense about poisoning for critters can't be applied to plants. It could take months for hard water to kill your plant, but it will, eventually. It's not worth the risk, really - distilled or reverse osmosis water is super cheap, and rainwater is free. Would you rather replace your plant every month for $6, or your water every month for $1?
Best luck,
~Joe
 
  • #24
There's just no reason not to get distilled water or rain water and yet still complain about the plant. If you resist using the suggestions of the highly knowledgeable growers here, you'll find that they will be far less likely to help when the plant eventually starts to succumb to the buildup of minerals the plant can't handle. Distilled water is virtually if not literally the same price as bottled water and as stated numerous times above, rainwater is free. If you care enough about your plant to post here and ask for help, just make one more tiny effort to give it the best chance possible. In addition to the great resources given above, I would check out the Petflytrap Care Page which comes with every plant sold from the owners of this website. Anyway... I hope you decide to use rainwater or distilled and read the care sheets. Good luck!

~ Brett
 
  • #25
according to the USGS, most of Kansas has very hard water.
the highest levels.
and the east side of Kansas isnt super-soft either..
dont use Kansas tap water anywhere..its all no good for CPs.

if your plant still seems "ok" it isnt because the water is ok..
its only because the hardness hasnt built up enough yet to kill the plant...but it will.
a week or two, even a month or two, isnt long enough to judge if the water is ok..
and based on the USGS hardness info, it isnt ok...


[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Patterns of hardness in the United States are shown on the map of accounting units at the bottom of the figure. Softest waters were in parts of the New England, South Atlantic-Gulf, Pacific Northwest, and Hawaii regions. Moderately hard waters were common in many of the rivers of the Tennessee, Great Lakes, Pacific Northwest, and Alaska regions. Hard and very hard waters were found in some of the streams in most of the regions throughout the country. Hardest waters (greater than 1,000 mg/L) were measured in streams in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Arizona, and southern California.

http://water.usgs.gov/owq/map1.jpeg

http://water.usgs.gov/owq/Explanation.html
 
  • #26
Ssgrock, Give you a break, bucko? Forget that. From what I have seen and read so far, you don't follow directions.
As clear as it can be made. NO TAP WATER!!!
NOT Bottled
NOT Purified
NOT Drinking water!
DISTILLED, REVERSE OSMOSIS, or RAINWATER ONLY!!! Following this so far? If you cannot follow the simplest direction, then do not grow these plants. Tap water will kill these plants, especially the mineral rich water in the mid-west. If you expect the plant to live, then follow the directions given you, or prepare to watch your plant die. Flush that pot with distilled water as soon as you can. ANY minerals you have given your VFT by foolishly hoping it would be ok to water it in the wrong manner, need to be flushed out of the pot. FOLLOW DIRECTIONS if you want the plant to flourish, or ask yourself why you bother coming here if you won't listen. Shortcuts in the care of your plant just might kill it dead, dead, dead!!!!! No, I will not give you a break, anymore than I will give myself a break.
 
  • #27
really, they are very simple to care for. distilled water is only about 50 or 60 cents per gallon which will last you a long time with only one plant. If you read bugweeds signature it says he's been growing for 43 years, so he knows what he's talking about.
 
  • #28
Yeah, I have about 6 plants, and one gallon of distilled water lasts me a whole week.
 
  • #29
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]DISTILLED, REVERSE OSMOSIS, or RAINWATER ONLY!!!

He is right. That is all I have to say about that.
smile_k_ani_32.gif
 
  • #30
And if you're lucky enough to work in a laboratory - deionized water.
smile.gif
 
  • #31
I heeded the advice, thanks to those of you that took pity on me regarding my compulsive purchase of a VFT without doing the proper research.  I'm sure bugweed will be releived to know that my one man effort to drive the VFT into extinction has failed.  I repotted my VFT in a large plastic pot with drain holes, place the pot in a 2 inch deep base plate that is constantly filled with distilled water.  I have been watering my VFT with distilled water for a couple weeks or so, I also used a 2/3 to 1/3 ratio of peat moss to perlite mixture.  The black edges that were appearing on the traps have gone away and I have noted three of four new leaves have sprouted.  I fed it a wood louse about two weeks ago.  Haven't fed it an insect since.  I've waterd it every other day and left it alone, it seems to be doing just grand.  I have it outside under my deck where it gets partial sun.  Its been pretty hot here in Kansas the last week or so, mid ninties, bright sun, and hot.  But the location seems to be fine.  So, thanks for the good advice and patience with me.  So far, so good.
 
  • #32
Glad to here it. I hope you post back with any new questions that arise.

~ Brett
 
  • #33
Every single VFT I've ever had...has died. And they were heartbreakingly beautiful plants, too. I did the research. I water with only distilled or rain water. I used a mix of peat and leveling sand(rinsed 4 times). I've put them in full sun, I've put them in part sun(I get conflicting advice from really knowledgeable people on this issue). And still, they die. I give up. I don't like killing things, or, having them die on my watch. I may try one more time, and pot two of the dang things in straight LFS, and keep one in full sun, and one in part shade. I don't think they're that easy, I just think you guys are very talented!

I thought I had a green thumb until I met my first VFT! Aprilh
 
  • #34
They really must be easy because all I do really is water them with distilled water and give them a bug maybe twice a year since they're on my windowsill receiving partial light. Oh yea - I got them at PFT so I already knew the plants were genetically strong and their medium perfect. If you do try again good luck and tell us what happens.

~ Brett
 
  • #35
[b said:
Quote[/b] (aprilh @ July 11 2005,3:48)]Every single VFT I've ever had...has died. And they were heartbreakingly beautiful plants, too. I did the research. I water with only distilled or rain water.  I used a mix of peat and leveling sand(rinsed 4 times). I've put them in full sun, I've put them in part sun(I get conflicting advice from really knowledgeable people on this issue).  And still, they die.  I give up. I don't like killing things, or, having them die on my watch. I may try one more time, and pot two of the dang things in straight LFS, and keep one in full sun, and one in part shade.  I don't think they're that easy, I just think you guys are very talented!  

I thought I had a green thumb until I met my first VFT!  Aprilh
must be the sand then..
thats the only variable that no one else uses! ;)
(no one else uses your particular sand I mean...probably something in it.)

try again without the sand..
use straight LFS or straight peat..
I never saw the point of using sand myself..
I tried it once, 50/50 peat/sand.
made a very dense, heavy, solid mix..I didnt like it.
will never use sand again..no reason for it.

Scot
 
  • #36
I just consider myself a wannabe backyard grower and I thought the exact same thing about VFTs. Then I bought a few from this resource and did one thing that I never did on earlier attempts at growing VFTs... I didn't mess with them. I know that's a real dumb story but so far it's been working, as crazy as it sounds. Don't get me wrong... I'm dying to race outside and check them every hours thinking 'anything new, anything happen, you guys OK?'. Of all my last 8 million attempts of growing VFTs the longest I've been able to keep a plant was 2 weeks. I'm on the first month and they're growing like crazy. I guess sometimes it's best to not worry.  
smilie4.gif
 
  • #37
Scupbucket, you sound like you are on the right track. YOU can definately find all the info. you need here to keep your plants alive.
smile.gif
 
  • #38
Thanks for your help, Scotty. I will buy some common VFTs and see if I can get them to grow in straight peat and straight LFS. Partial sun and full sun. I really like them, they're very pretty plants. And useful! Between the S. Purpurea and the VFT's that I had..they could make a dent in the earwig population!
 
  • #39
Hmmm, per chance has any one happened to notice what the Schultz Professional Cactus & Succulent Potting mix ingredients are these days?  The ingredients are listed in the lower left hand corner of the back of the bag.
http://www.schultz.com/ProductCategories/Soilsamendments/CactusSoil/
If you are in shock after reading the ingredients straight from the bag, please take a moment to call their customer service number at 314.298.2700 and ask one of their customer service agents to verify the ingredients.  This is what will be read to you from the bag:
This product is regionally formulated from 28%-38% reed-sedge peat, sphagnum peat moss, perlite, & washed sand.

Definitely not a product in which any one would want to even attempt to try to grow a cactus in my humble opinion but I bet there is a succulent out there that might have a fighting chance.

I was under the impression that any type of sphagnum peat was superior to reed-sedge peat for a multitude of reasons but I doubt his VFT would have croaked in that mix that I can't believe is marketed for cacti.  His plant was probably in transplant shock and that takes a bit of time to recover from. Personally, I prefer Canadian Peat because it generally has a lower pH.  I do add rinsed sand to my mix.

Welcome to the forums ssgrock. And I do mean that sincerely as do the others.
 
  • #40
My BFT seems to being doing okay. Still, I'm experiencing some anxiety, in that the traps of my VFT seem to rather rapidly turn black around the edges, the blackness spreads to the whole trap in a matter of a few days, but I also see new growth on the inside portion of the plant. Is this normal? I would like to get it to grow larger. I was wondering, how large could it get? And should I be concerned over the rather rapid die off and re-growth of the stems and traps?
 
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