TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk
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seedjar
Let's positive thinking!
What time of day did you take those measurements, Chris? Nepenthes vary in what kind of night/daytime conditions they like. If your temperature drops significantly each night (10+F difference) then you should grow highland Neps, which come from montane environments where the nighttime temperature is lower and the humidity is higher. If the temp stays the same, then lowlanders are for you. Lowlanders live in hot, humid jungle-like environments that hold in heat well at night and have little variance between day and night conditions. If you don't have the conditions for the plants you want, you can heat the terrarium to grow lowlanders, or air condition/humidify at night to grow highlanders. There are great plants in either classification, though, so it's easiest to just go with whatever will do well in your terrarium without fancy add-ons like heaters and such.
As far as other CPs, any common tropical CP stands a decent chance with your conditions. D. prolifera, schizandra and adelae are particularly well suited for terrarium life and you should try them. Pinguicula lusitanica is a weed in most collections and is another good place to start. Tropical Utricularia would also be well suited, maybe something like U. calcyfida (I don't know the Utrics that well - I'm sure there are more options available as far as bladderworts go.) Do watch out for those Utrics, though; there are some, like U. sandersonii and subulata, that will have no trouble taking over your entire terrarium and make life hard for low-growing plants like Pinguicula and Drosera. The Savage Garden by Peter D'Amato has a nice list of plants that are good for the terrarium.
~Joe
As far as other CPs, any common tropical CP stands a decent chance with your conditions. D. prolifera, schizandra and adelae are particularly well suited for terrarium life and you should try them. Pinguicula lusitanica is a weed in most collections and is another good place to start. Tropical Utricularia would also be well suited, maybe something like U. calcyfida (I don't know the Utrics that well - I'm sure there are more options available as far as bladderworts go.) Do watch out for those Utrics, though; there are some, like U. sandersonii and subulata, that will have no trouble taking over your entire terrarium and make life hard for low-growing plants like Pinguicula and Drosera. The Savage Garden by Peter D'Amato has a nice list of plants that are good for the terrarium.
~Joe
seedjar
Let's positive thinking!
Neps can get big, but they can be kept small if you get the right species and can bear to prune it back. Take a look at BobZ's CP photo finder to get a feel for what the genus Drosera has to offer, then do a search for the species or ask here to find out what kind of conditions they like. Those three I mentioned offer a nice contrast of leaf shapes, and they're kind of large and showy too.
~Joe
~Joe
TELL'EM JOE!!!!!!!!!!!! And that ain't all. There are many species that love year round warm conditions, and will thrive for you as you get better at growing them. Lots to read and learn, and a CP society to find and communicate with! Do all you can to learn as much as you can, and be prepared for some occasional suprises as your plants sometimes do things they are not supposed to. Like a VFT flowering in late September when they are supposed to do that in May and June. How to pollinate your babies and get copious seed. And growing everything you want to try successfully through much trial and error. Glad you are here!
Bugweed, you are the bomb-diggity-doo. I am definitely stoked about this whole CP-growing adventure that iv already begun. my classic style terrarium is looking pretty SAH-WEEEET as of right now... minus having any CPs in it. hahaha. Its a pretty tall tank so itll have a "hill" in the back for a nep with airy, less waterlogged soil, and then different levels of soil for more or less watery, bright, etc. conditions. I'll let you all know how badly i mess this up with each day.
oh and thanks so much to all of you that have contributed your efforts to my... efforts.
seedjar
Let's positive thinking!
ehhhhm, well honestly im being pretty stingy with my distilled water supply so i dont really want to go all out with the terrarium until i get the CPs. ill just have to work at it really fast once i get the plants in to get the right levels. and yes, i will have trials and errors galore, i know.
Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen of the TerraForums, I have finally started my adventures in CP-land with this newbie style classic terrarium. The drainage layer is pure perlite and the substrate is a mix of peat and perlite, with a little LFS in there. The humidity n temp are monitored by the little white thing on the left side, and the plastic cup is there to monitor the water level and so i can siphon some out if necessary (ok so theres an aquatic utric in there right now but he'll be moved soon). I have currently growing live LFS, 5 different terrestrial utrics, and 6 different drosera. We shall see who will survive to become adults and who will die as a shipping-shocked seedling. Advice is appreciated.
seedjar
Let's positive thinking!
Where's more pics? You should think about getting some mylar or foil reflectors - mylar over white cardboard works well - and line the back and sides of the tank to increase the effective lighting. A hood for that light might not hurt either, if you can get one. Make sure to allow for ventilation. What is that light anyways?
You might think of adding a ventilation fan sometime in the future, but it's probably not yet necessary.
Best luck,
~Joe
You might think of adding a ventilation fan sometime in the future, but it's probably not yet necessary.
Best luck,
~Joe
you want more pics?? i got em! the plants are doing fairly well, i had to keep them out of much light for the first couple of days to acclimate them, but a few plants have put out new leaves with dew so im hopeful. heres the setup with reflective paper on the back and sides (on the outside.)
lol, and my lil thermo/hydro checker:
and finally, the label for the reflective wrap that i bought at party city! its really good stuff.
lol, and my lil thermo/hydro checker:
and finally, the label for the reflective wrap that i bought at party city! its really good stuff.
okay guys, so its been a little while since i started growing my little droserae and utrics (and little pings) in my terrarium. theres good growth coming from all plants, no doubt about that, but i noticed that my sundews are looking pitifully pitiful. I know they are lacking light but i wonder if anything else could be wrong. At first when they put out new leaves, dew was apparent, but now im not so sure. theres tons of new leaves but all green and weird and practicallly dew-less. i need some input. gracias. muchas gracias, my friends.
seedjar
Let's positive thinking!
Are they just lacking dew, or do they grow without tentacles altogether? The latter is often a sign of a coming aphid infestation. Are the leaves at all deformed?
If you know the light is inadaquate, fix that first and then worry about other stuff. Light is to plants as food is to animals; it's a very important factor in growing, possibly the most important. You'll almost certainly see a rapid improvement with better light. Sundews use lots of sugar to make their dew (I think,) and the sugar comes from water, air and light (and photosynthesis.) If you didn't have the first two, I doubt the plants would be doing anything at all. Keep in mind, most sundews come from places where there is too much light and not enough nutrients, so they use that extra light to lure bugs in for fertilizer.
Another possibility is that you could, maybe, be underwatering them. Is there a water table in the tank? If the tank is drying out all the way to the bottom, water it a little more often.
~Joe
If you know the light is inadaquate, fix that first and then worry about other stuff. Light is to plants as food is to animals; it's a very important factor in growing, possibly the most important. You'll almost certainly see a rapid improvement with better light. Sundews use lots of sugar to make their dew (I think,) and the sugar comes from water, air and light (and photosynthesis.) If you didn't have the first two, I doubt the plants would be doing anything at all. Keep in mind, most sundews come from places where there is too much light and not enough nutrients, so they use that extra light to lure bugs in for fertilizer.
Another possibility is that you could, maybe, be underwatering them. Is there a water table in the tank? If the tank is drying out all the way to the bottom, water it a little more often.
~Joe
hooorayyy for my terrarium!! Okay all you classic terrarium bashers, listen up. My dews and utrics are doing quite well and i never have to feed them because i am somehow breeding plentiful fungus gnats lol. its a perfect set up and theyr growing fast! I need a little more light though, they arent showing good color or lots of dew. Should i get another 2ft twin bulb flourescent tube set up (it fits) or compact flourescents??
