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General dum questions

Dum question #1:
Does anybody know what the typical life span is on a vft if it is taken care of well and survives dormanices? (I've been sick, so I've had more time to lie around and think of things like this.
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question #2:
This has absolutely nothing to do with the last question. I've had my green dragon for about a month now, and noticed that at least several of the traps won't close. (I found this out when I tried to feed it, then I tried to trigger a few just to see if they would even close at all) Can anyone offer any help?  
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Question #1: I've read on here that someone has a VFT over 50 years old (something to shoot for)

Question 2: Traps have a limited operational span, 4 or 5 closings is pretty much the limit. As long as the traps are still green, they are producing food through photosynthesis. When they die, cut off only the black parts to prevent any possible fungal infections.

Good luck with your plants,
Steve
 
Venus fltyraps can live 30 years or more if taken care of. As traps age, they begin to react more slowly than when new. After about 4 closings the traps may simply stop working all together. Leave the non-functional traps on the plant until they die back. Traps also react slower during the dormancy period.

The reason traps stop working is due to the fact that the closing of the trap is actually rapid growth. Each time the trap closes, the outside layers grow rapidly to close the trap. Once the prey has been digested, or if the trap was tricked into closings, the trap regrows on the inside in order to reopen and reset the trap. Eventually, the traps simply lose the ability for this growth habit and stop working.

I hope this helps.
 
i have a 50 year old flytrap , although i did not raise it for 50 years i got it in a trade from bobz . you must really have to take care of your flytaps well if you want them to live longer as i heard and with no mistakes .
 
goldtrap2690,
do you have any pics of your "old man" to post? (hee hee) also, i live in N. Texas. Any advice on how i can care for my brats the best i can?
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I think my common one is 4yrs old. I got it at a local nursery. I got the green dragon from petflytrap.
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</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (NickHubbell @ July 27 2003,8:37)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Traps also react slower during the dormancy period.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Note: You should not be feeding your traps during dormancy.

Steve
 
The traps don't react slowly just in dormancy; the colder the weather, the slower the trap closes, the warmer the weather, the faster the trap closes (of course there is a limit with heat when the plant will just fry and not close its traps at all
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So goldtrap do you have any pics?
 
i would like to see a 50 year old vft too, even if there is no differnce
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. i believe if the trap is tickled into closing without the sealing phase, it can open and close for up to 20 times, but can only go through the sealing phase 3-4 times. how are your traps posed butthead? if the cilia (teeth) are pointing away from each other, the trap is probably unuseable. if the cilia is angled towards each other, the trap may work. Zongyi
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  • #10
i can get pics , i have a digital camera , but i am going to have to figure out how to load it to my comp and post it on the forums . you may want to wait a while as i'm not used to using the camera yet .
 
  • #11
Does anyone have an exact foot andle figure on survivable light strength for vfts?

I ask for 2 reasons....

1. I REALLY WANT TO KNOW! I live in Texas, and full windowsill sun has burnt my plants to a crisp 3 times(the plant is still alive but quite angry at me)! It would be much simpler to know an exact range in footcandles rather than "full sun" or "part shade"......the light in North Carolina has to be weaker than that in Texas....

2. If nobody knows I might be able to find out....I work in an ecology lab and am currently doing an independent study....I need to write a thesis and since I have a Li-Cor 6400 at my disopsal I can easily put this question to rest by measuing the photosinthetic rates at various light intensities, write up my findings and thus kill to birds with 1 stone.....IF I can get this project approved.

Note: the world really will be a better place if we have this knowlege...we could then max out the light safely.....no more guess work and no more burnt leaves.....
 
  • #12
i believe its around 900 foot candles. Zongyi
 
  • #13
wow......thats what shade is for me.....thanks Zongyi.
 
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