TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk
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Afternoon, terraforums. I have a very young n. ventricosa that I got from Lowe'. None of the pitchers are open yet, but when one does open I want to try feeding it some insects to speed up his growth. Any suggestions? Remember, these are really small, juvenile pitchers. Thanks.
Springtails, ants, and fungus gnats are all insects that small pitchers can be fed, or might even catch on their own. Betta fish pellets might also work, but I have never tried that. Another option is a fertilizer such as maxsea.
In addition to all of the above suggestions, there was a great article by veteran grower, Bob Sacilotto, in a 2004 CPN newsletter: CPN Samples
He went through great lengths to feed seedling Nepenthes, including the application of fertilizer into juvenile pitchers, using, of all things, hollow deer hair as a pipette. It is a scholarly article, which has helped me, over the years, both in growing highlanders -- and, indirectly, even with their micropropagation . . .
You'd probably also be surprised at how much they can catch on their own. Even if they're in an enclosed environment. I'm consistently amazed at how many small gnats and midge like flys my small seedlings have caught when ever I peak into their pitchers. It seems my grow chamber has a sustainable population of them. Even the tiniest of newly formed pitchers even catch them, the pitchers are so small and thin you can see the shadows of its prey through the pitcher. But despite them catching their own food I still very much enjoy feeding them, after all thats what makes growing Cps so fun. At least for me.
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