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VFT With No Dormancy Mentioned on ICPS

  • Thread starter Acro
  • Start date
"In spite of what many people believe, it does not require dormancy to survive long term. It only requires dormancy if it is going to experience freezing temperatures."

See the last paragraph: http://www.carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Dionaea

Is this true? Anyone with experience?
 
While I haven't tried growing Dionaea long-term without dormancy I do trust this source. John Brittnacher has shown himself to be an observant, cautious and very experienced grower. Having said that, it is an interesting concept - especially if you are someone who has been jumping through the hoops of providing dormancy for these plants.
 
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Interesting, it makes sense though. If flytraps can naturalize into Florida where it's possible for a winter to stay much warmer than usual it makes sense that they can grow without a dormancy period.
 
They've also naturalized even further South in Jamaica, along with S. minor and S. rubra, oddly enough.
 
Not sure I buy this but I have heard someone say that they only require longer dark nights and not cold. I'm not believing it as it does get cold down where they come from.
 
I've actually been wondering about this topic, recently, myself.

I have some Dionaea that have skipped one or two deeply cold dormancy periods, so far. They're all indoors, and the light has been 18/6 throughout, but the temperature drops 10-20F in the coldest days of winter (compared to the hottest days of summer), and the humidity drops significantly, as well. That said, I don't believe the temperature ever drops below 50F (58F was the lowest surface temperature that I recorded with my IR thermometer), and the light has exactly as intense every day. I don't remember what happened last year, but this year, the plants that grow both tall and low leaves based on the season, switched to their winter forms, and are just now switching back into their summer forms.

All but one, are thriving. I am going to attempt to feed them, this year.

This makes me believe that Dionaea don't require a long, near-freezing dormancy period, to undergo metabolic changes according to the seasons. I am not sure what would happen if they didn't get any form of environmental changes, at all.
 
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This is something I've been curious about as this past winter was unusually warm, and it didn't seem worth the risk to put my terrarium they reside in outside for it (since Vegas sun usually equals death to any CPs here). Because of this, none of my VFTs were put into dormancy, and they're looking pretty scraggily and sad right now.

I'm tempted to let them ride until next winter, but I'm wondering if it would be worthwhile to force a dormancy with them via the fridge method.
 
  • #10
This is something I've been curious about as this past winter was unusually warm, and it didn't seem worth the risk to put my terrarium they reside in outside for it (since Vegas sun usually equals death to any CPs here). Because of this, none of my VFTs were put into dormancy, and they're looking pretty scraggily and sad right now.

I'm tempted to let them ride until next winter, but I'm wondering if it would be worthwhile to force a dormancy with them via the fridge method.

You might as well let them keep going. We're half way through the year now. IMHO not giving dormancy is a really bad idea. They need it. Follow nature.
 
  • #11
It's worth experimenting with. I've read that in the absence of a dormancy, VFTs gradually etiolate and die eventually somewhere down the line. Whether it's within the next growing season or within several, I'm not sure.

I've never tried skipping dormancy but I've read that you can. I've found random internet articles stating that light cues are really the main thing driving dormancy and that the cold isn't necessary. Thinking about it now, my D.binata multifida extrema goes dormant whenever it feels like it seemingly in complete absence of any cues. Maybe dormancy isn't as sharply necessary as people make it out to be. Like an old wives tale of carnivorous plant husbandry.

If someone tries it it and the plant dies; Lowes stocks flytraps every season from bug biting plants. They're only 5 bucks and 90% of those end up in the trash from neglect by store. Most of what you see in box stores are basically tissue cultured clones from some proto-mother plant. In essence, the the original plant's genes have essentially been immortalized and dispersed to every Lowes in the country so it's not like anything is truly lost if the plant dies, except maybe 5 bucks and little pride/effort...
 
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  • #12
Not sure I buy this but I have heard someone say that they only require longer dark nights and not cold. I'm not believing it as it does get cold down where they come from.

It's my understanding that the photoperiod is the primary dormancy driver as well
 
  • #13
I've been growing some under lights for eight or so years that I got from Ivan Snyder who was growing them under lights. They've been grown under lights maybe close to 15-20 years total. All year round, no sequestering to the refrigerator. They grow better than the ones I leave outdoors all year round. And contrary to most opinion they do not need insane levels of light. I'm just using two T12 and two T5 24 inch tubes.
 
  • #14
I've been growing some under lights for eight or so years that I got from Ivan Snyder who was growing them under lights. They've been grown under lights maybe close to 15-20 years total. All year round, no sequestering to the refrigerator. They grow better than the ones I leave outdoors all year round. And contrary to most opinion they do not need insane levels of light. I'm just using two T12 and two T5 24 inch tubes.

What is the winter temperature you keep them at? And length of time of the light they get?
 
  • #15
I've been growing some under lights for eight or so years that I got from Ivan Snyder who was growing them under lights. They've been grown under lights maybe close to 15-20 years total. All year round, no sequestering to the refrigerator. They grow better than the ones I leave outdoors all year round. And contrary to most opinion they do not need insane levels of light. I'm just using two T12 and two T5 24 inch tubes.

Interesting. Do they flower? If so, when? All at the same time? How much seed and do you know how viable it is?
 
  • #16
I do rather wonder if this is simply true across the board for any vft, or if it is a case of tolerance/cold dormancy variation across the population. In which case, those vfts which are not as tolerant or truly require a chilly dormancy die off in areas like Florida but those which, due to their particular genetic make up, happen to be more heat tolerant or require less of a typical dormancy survive and proliferate.

 
  • #17
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I’ve had VFTs in the GH for several years, it doesn’t get below 55F and usually 60+F is more common in the winter.

I moved one VFT into the house, bay window, just as an experiment last fall. As the days shortened, the plant shrank in size and entered dormancy. I don’t know the temp of the window deep in winter, but this morning it was 25F and the windowsill was 60F. It’s been out of dormancy for several weeks and now making a flower. It’s clearly ahead of the plants in the GH, which is kind of weird since they get more sun. Pic is from today.
 
  • #18
I've actually been wondering about this topic, recently, myself.

I have some Dionaea that have skipped one or two deeply cold dormancy periods, so far. They're all indoors, and the light has been 18/6 throughout, but the temperature drops 10-20F in the coldest days of winter (compared to the hottest days of summer), and the humidity drops significantly, as well. That said, I don't believe the temperature ever drops below 50F (58F was the lowest surface temperature that I recorded with my IR thermometer), and the light has exactly as intense every day. I don't remember what happened last year, but this year, the plants that grow both tall and low leaves based on the season, switched to their winter forms, and are just now switching back into their summer forms.

All but one, are thriving. I am going to attempt to feed them, this year.

This makes me believe that Dionaea don't require a long, near-freezing dormancy period, to undergo metabolic changes according to the seasons. I am not sure what would happen if they didn't get any form of environmental changes, at all.

Almost another year in the books... I still don't see anything that indicates that the plants won't continue to thrive, though they haven't flowered (neither has my big Ceph, which is definitely old enough), so this year I changed things up a little bit.

I opened a window, which dropped the temp into the low 50's and maybe even a tiny bit below in the middle of the coldest few nights, and kept the temps in between 66-73 during the day,. I also dropped the photoperiod to 14/10 from 20/4, and will be returning it to the summer schedule on April 1st. The window was closed this week, since bugs are starting to show up outdoors again, and I don't want pests coming into my plant room.

Still, no deep dormancy, but more of a change than the previous years. I just want the flowers for breeding projects, otherwise I wouldn't mind.
 
  • #19
From a grower in south florida (high forties were the lowest lows we got, and that was maybe for a week in total), the plants do not need a cold dormancy
However, they do go dormant
Doesn't matter that it's 80° out, as long as the light levels decrease enough, they will take the cues and go dormant they'll wake up and flower a few months later.

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  • #20
Same goes for all SE US carnivores afaik

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