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I was a real bookworm when I was a kid (and still am). I would read about things in books, and then I would be utterly fascinated when I encountered the subject in real life. I remember reading about slugs when I was in 1st grade, and thought it was curious that a snail wouldn't have a shell. One day at recess at school, I actually saw a slug on a leaf, for the first time. I sat all throughout recess studying it.

Similarly, I recall being in a large public library in Waterbury CT (probably between 1976-1978), and reading a book about carnivorous plants. I distinctly remember the pictures (don't remember if they were photos or illustrations) of VFTs, Nepenthes, Sarracenia and Drosera. I also vaguely recall it mentioning bladderworts and butterworts.

My first direct contact came when I ordered a VFT from a comic book. It was probably 1979 or 1980. I had read enough about them that I kept it alive quite some time (it was my parents who killed it, along with my other plants, by cooking it in the hot summer sun in 1986.

In 1981, I was hiking through a bog in Connecticut with a group from a day camp. The bog was filled with S purpurea and D rotundifolia (there may have been D intermedia there, too, but the rotundifolia was the one i identified. I remember walking off the wooden walkway into the bog to get a closer look. Later that summer, I convenced my parents to take me back to that site, so I could show them, and collect some plants (before you lecture me, I was 11, and nobody told me I shouldn't). I took one purp and one sundew. I kept them in a fishbowl, and they did very well in it, flowering and setting seed several times. (If it makes you feel any better about my collecting the plants from the wild, i returned some seed from the plants to that bog on a subsequent visit...)

Our house in Connecticut at that time was located right next to a very marshy area... there was sphagnum moss growing there. If I'd known more about different CP genera, I might have explored it more, and found some. As it was, I had always wondered if I'd find anything interesting in that marshy area if i went exploring.

After my parents killed my plants in summer of 1986 when I was at a summer camp (can you tell I still hold a grudge?), my passion for CPs lay dormant until 2003, when I began acquiring plants anew.

Here is a picture my mother recently sent me from 1981 or 1982, when we lived in Middlebury CT.

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The brandy snifter holds my VFTs (I had bought one, and managed to propagate it by leaf pullings); the mason jar has my D rotundifolia, and you can see the S purpurea in bloom to the right.

So, no, this is not a recent transient obsession of mine.
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As an Air Force brat, we moved all over the place. When I was 4, we moved to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. The base was absolutely covered with odd looking plants, so I asked questions. When I learned they were carnivorous, the fascination began. The Mom allowed no plants at home, but my Terrarium was the base itself. They were everywhere! No VFT's, but sundews and pings and utrics. Man it was great. Finding VFT's was too hard, no outlets then, but I had sarracenias everywhere, and that was all right with me. I didn't even get a VFT until '63. My first CP I killed was Darlingtonia. Bought it in Great Falls, Montana. 1961. Been going at it since then.
 
When I was about 9 or 10 I read about vft's. I was fascinated by them. I knew they grew around the area I lived, but I had no idea how or where to find them. I remember talking to a friend about them and he told me that some of them grew in a ditch behind his house. I was so excited. Then he told me that they weren't really vft's but they were carnivorous. I told him if they were not vft's then I had no interested. So I never even went to look.
Then when I was about 13, my mom bought a vft. It lived for about month.
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Then when I was 26, I was in Myrtle Beach and I saw a vft display. Of course I bought one. I took it home, read the directions. It said water with distilled water. I had well water so I thought that would be pure enough. I put it above the kitchen sink by a window that got a little bit of light. Anybody want to guess what happened? It died. So, I have killed two vft's and I lived where they grow naturally. All I really had to do was just put it outside.
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I moved to Ohio, I was in a store and saw cp's for sell. I bought a vft, purple pitcher plant and a sundew. This time I was smart enough to look into how they grow. This time I was hooked. Next thing I know, I've dedicated a whole room to growing cp's.

Don't worry about taking the plants when you were eleven, We forgive you.
 
wow guys thats pretty cool mine isnt that old yet since I guess I'm still a "kid"
When I was about 9 years old Me and my mom used to go to walmart all the time (because apparantly the savings just never stop
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) anyway I remember seeing about 100 neglected VFTs by the entrance into wal mart I asked my mom if I could have one for my science project, so I bought one, when I got it home I watered it with guess what tap water!!!! I just left it out on the porch for a few days completely forgetting about if of course it died, anyway when I was 11 (december '03) I decided to get back into cps I ordered several plants from one store, When I got them, I was very exited and just basically stuck them in a cup with some soil provided by the vendor, the flava survived thriving actually sending up 3 flower stalks and some pitchers, untill the unfortunately got knocked over and left bare root for a few days, flava will always be my favorite plant, anyway I made a bog with my brother where I potted about 200 dollars worth of VFTS inthey were in very nice shape and probably would've survived If I haden't repotted them so much (I litterally killed at least 150 flytraps) anyway I had a few nice plants in florida, where I could grow them outdoors practically year round, anyway I then heard I was moving to Colorado Springs, CO I knew the winters were harsh and I couldnt grow outside year round, anyway I asked if anyone knew any cp'ers in colo. spgs and guess who, Jeremiah Harris, anyway When I went to jeremiah's house I was amazed, his sarracenia and VFTs were awfull nice but his neps were breathtaking, Anyway jeremiah started me off with about 20 plants, and sarracenia are now my favorite genus. Sometimes I trade some fo my sarrs for some of Jeremiahs neps, I also found out I lived about 30 minutes from a habitat containing: S. Minor, P. Lutea, P. Careula and some other stuff I wish I had visited them.
 
Hey Kirk... I'm STILL a kid!

I killed a VFT when I was a pre-teen, given as a birthday present. Then I killed another when I was 17. Then another and another and.... I swore off the things because they were just too hard to keep alive for more than 3 months.

In June of '03, I saw an array of VFT's at Home Depot, and I just couldn't pass it up. I bought one and kept at work. I found Mr. D'Amato's & MR. Schnell's books at Borders and Barnes & Noble and began soakng up info.

Two months later I bought a "sundew species", a trio of red VFT's, a "purple pitcher plant", a "sweet pitcher plant", and a "butterwort species". I didn't know what they were and the pictures were inconclusive. So I went to the internet and did an intensive search. One thing led to another and I found the discussion forums. I bought some more plants: "tropical pitcher plant" another "Drosera species", and a cobra lily from Lowes. Then I discovered the trading post and started scarfing up seeds, plants, and gemmae right and left.
 
Several years ago my sister and I saw some VFT's and D. capensis (labeled "octopus plant") in a store so we bought a couple. The directions said to use distilled or rain water. Well, I didn't think tap water would hurt them, right? Wrong! The VFT's and the sundews all died in a short time.
I told my sister that someday I am going to have a whole collection of CP's.
Anyway, I forgot all about it until last year, when my fiance and I were in the grocery store and we walked past the floral area, and I noticed a strange looking plant over there. It turned out to be a S. x wrigleyana that was labeled as a cobra lily. Needless to say, I bought it.

Over the next few months I noticed different sarrs in different stores and I bought them up.
By this time I also got a copy of the Savage Garden. I figured that if I can keep a coral reef tank going for 4 years, I should be able to keep a darn plant alive.
Fast forward to Feb. '05.....I have 4 typical VFT's, a red dragon VFT, something like 10 or 12 different Drosera, 5 sarrs, something like 15 different neps, a lowland chamber, and a ping and an utric.
Sure is funny how this CP thing is addictive and my collection keeps getting bigger and bigger. It's getting to the point that I will need a bigger place soon....
 
My story is not nearly as sad(the killing) or as interesting, but here it is anyway. It was Christmas of '02, and I had had a very productive Christmas (I don't remember what all I got anymore, I just know it had been good so far) When I opened the VFT I was uterly amazed! They had also bought me one of those little box terrariums that you have to send off to get the plants. Well, I still have all the plants that they got me. They have gone through extreme ups and downs but they are finally happy because I have finally figured out what I am supposed to do. I am also a very fortunate guy because our well is feed by and underground stream on the top of a fairly tall hill. I have become addicted and am still adding plants to my collection. I just recently opened up a HUGE space to put dormant plants, and I fully intend on using it.
 
when I was a lil kid in mexico I went to see an imax film and they showed CP's. I was particularly interested in the VFTs. I came here to NC and went to the natural science museum where I read that VFT's were from NC and what was more, they lived in wilmingtom! I didn't know any english back then so I didn't read that they were threatened and I guess they didnt' have the live ones at the time cuz I didn't see them. I went to wilmington one day and looked EVERYWHERE on the beach (LOL... shut up! I was stupid!) and to my great surprise I didn't find any (I had also brought stuff to dig them up and take them home :p...)
so anyway I looked at nurseries and didn't find a thing, then my evil, stupid brother went on a trip and said they sold them there so I was utterly traumatized that he hadn't brought me any (darn him to hell i tell you!) so I started looking everywhere without any luck. After a while I finally went to lowes and I was shocked to find VFTs there. I bought a VFT and others and they were doing perfectly fine but then I got REALLY
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at my brother and my anger extended at every spec of dust I found so I (snif snif) cut all my plants up (I'm warning you... you do NOT want to see me REALLY angry :p... If I can do that to the plants I had waited so long to find... ... be afraid... be very afraid... LOL)
the irony here is that I just went out to buy my first CPs and did perfectly well with them... I watered them with tap water, etc... I was a natural CP grower :p...
ANYWAY... then autumn came the year after i killed them and I somehow got interested again so I researched online and bought more... after a while I talked to kyle who told me about this site and the rest is history (still being written though :p)
 
I always had a passion in plants ever since I was little ( do not know how the interest in plants began) but in third grade, I went to an asian food market with my family. Upon arrival, there was a tray of VFT and S. Purpurea to the left of me. I left the storeto ask my mom if I could buy one then when entering the store again, I saw my brother had gotten one. My mom has agreed as I went to pick out a plant and purchased it later. From there on my interest in CP had rocket but my first VFT had not. It lived 2 or 3 years and 7 months WITHOUT dormancy then the plant had collapsed. From there on, I had killed several VFT, obtained my first Sundew, Nepenthes and so on....

But from there on, I had successes and failures of growing these amazing plants.
 
  • #10
I always wanted a VFT when I was little. My mom thought fly bodies woul be everywhere and refused to get me one. A few years ago I got one as a birthday present. On a trip to orlando to visit family friensd I say Tony Camellari's book at Barns and Noble. I bought the book to since it said VFTs were easy to grow. When I returned home my VFT had died. Fortunatly the pictures were so, so shiny at first and I knew I had to get another type of Cp. I researched in the Library and wrote to what seemed like a thousand nuseries and cp societies. Only California Carnivores, Lee's Bg and Peter Pauls cared to write back. Of course being cheep I ordered from LBG first. One day I will order from California Carnivores though. One day.
 
  • #11
well, I've always had a passion for NATURE since i was tiny. my aunt always tells me the story of how when i was little she and others asked me if i wanted to go to the sierra (it's basically woods) and I said they didn't even have to ask. That I ALWAYS wanted to go :p
 
  • #12
My grandfather was my biggest plant growing influence. He took me to a local greenhouse where you could rent a plot 4'x4' for $60 a year (1978). They showed us lots of techniques for various plants but only experimented a tiny bit with VFT's and Sundews there.

After a six year stint in the Navy, I located a listserv totally by accident on Carnivorous Plants (1992). I conversed with some people there and before I knew it, a kind Cp'er from North Carolina sent me a box with 18 exotic cp's that I'd never seen before.

I've never forgotten that generosity and realize that's the spirit of most people growing CP's. Always help out the newbie and answer those questions!!

Kirk
Fitchburg, Mass.

What was torture is finding out about all the CP's in exotic places I'd recently visited in the Navy but never seen (Australia, New Guinea, Singapore, Thailand, Phillipines etc.)
 
  • #13
ive always been a plant nut. i think its genetic. ppl still coment on how my grandfathers yard was absolutly stunning and he has been dead 20 years. on the other side my grandfather was a farmer, he retired 4 or 5 years ago. i have always had house plants. i killed a small number of CPs when i was younger, capensis, VFT, a Sarr.....the usual and never really gave them much of a second thought. about 2 and a half years ago my now fiance' said she loved orchids, and since she insists she has a black thumb and she knows how well i have grown plants in the past she insisted i try orchids for her. well i found out i could grow and flower them about as easy as most plants i had tried in the past. so one day while searching for a new orchid at a greenhouse a couple towns over i ran across a Nepenthes on a clearence stand cause it had no pitchers. being fairly well read i knew what it was but not how to take care of it do to lack of info on Nepenthes care in the main stream. anyways it was about 2 feet in diameter and priced at $9, who could resist? within a week of that purchase i stumbled onto these forums. got enough info to get the thing to pitcher, it turned out to be a 'Miranda' with large colorful pitchers. i was hooked. after that i think schoalty sent me a plug of U. livida, those lil flowers got me hooked on that group which now comprises half the CP species i have. Tamlin sent me some pygmy Drosera gemmea which i got started and made my first major mistake of improper labeling. i still have that pot of mixed unknown pygmys. ive been dang careful ever since. from there i went downhill fast. i now have a decent sized collection, quite impressive i think for just 15 months or so in the hobby and i hope to double the number of Utrics and Genlisea i own by next winter.
 
  • #14
[b said:
Quote[/b] ] I went to Wilmington one day and looked EVERYWHERE on the beach (LOL... shut up! I was stupid!)

I know you wouldn't think that there are cp's within miles of an ocean. I have seen them very close to the beach. I have a map from my gps, of a site that has vft's, pitcher plants and sundews. This site is just outside Wilmington. The site is on an island, one side the ocean is .548 miles away. On the other side it's only .233 miles away.

My pic hosting site won't accept the map because of it's file type. If somebody can host it for me I'll send it to them, so I can put it up here.
 
  • #15
oh really? cool!
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]i think its genetic
lol... i must be a mutant. My mom kills tons of plants and my dad doesn't care much.
my mom always liked nature a little bit but i brought her into the dark side lol.
 
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