I am worried

[TamaFreak]

 happy when i found this webbie!!  

I recived my VFT a week or two ago. My mother found it in a plant store, knowing I wanted one. I was so happy when I got it. All the little paper said was feed it insects, keep it moist, It doesn't need to be re-potted. I asked Jeeves about venus fly traps, and this came up! Yay! But then I realized I had done some things wrong!  

 I gave it tap water, and fed it some hamburger today. (Cause I heard from someother website that you could feed it that) Now I am paranoid that I killed it. There is no redness anywhere, I don't even know what kind it is!!  

Please help!! I live in Mass so i keep it inside, cause you never know when it will be cold. It is in the kitchen window facing northeast. also incased with a plastic thingy. I need suggestions for anything to do/not do being a noob to this.
Melissa
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[Sarracenia0]

well i dont think the tap water will kill it unles you use alot and all the time.  and the hamburger meet wil probably just kill that 1 trap. not the plant.  but hey everione makes mistakes on my first vft i put it in a closet. lol

hope i helped

 

[magore]

First remove the plastic thingy, it will bake the plant.Second keep the pot in a tray of distilled water. You only need a 1/4 to 1/2 inch of water in the tray. Third return to this website often and you will learn more.

 

[wickedthistle]

Welcome to the forums!

First thing, your plant probably won't die from the few things that have happened. Just follow this list (people will add more hints, but these are the most immediate)

1)Distilled, rain, or reverse osmosis water only. Best way to water is to keep the pot in a little tray, keep that filled with water.

2)You can take the plastic top off. Venus Fly Traps (VFTs) enjoy humidity, but they also like air circulation!

3)No more burgers

Just insects/worms. If your VFT is not fed, it will not die, maybe just grow a little slower. You can catch insects in outside if you keep your plant indoors, or take it out for a few hours.

4)You probably have a regular VFT. It will get a little bit red with enough sun. Anyone live near Mass? They'll give you more specific sun advice, I'm from so. CA so sun is very different over here.

 

[BuMbOiMk]

dont panic!! =] you still have time!!
You should try to give it distilled water or rainwater. Tap water is not too good because the chemicals buildup, but I think you can flush them out with the cleaner water. Just keep the soil moist, probably in a saucer with about 1/2" of water in it. And don't go tOo crazy about feeding because then you will be like me and try to feed it big gigantic bugs that wont fit. It won't die, but the trap will probably rot/die off. If yours is only green thats fine too, its probably just a typical flytrap. If it is a typical, uSuaLLy the inside of the traps turn a little red with good lighting/sun. Oh and feeding bugs, you don't have to feed it bugs too much because its a normal plant and goes through photosynthesis. But the occasional bug should help it grow larger.
hmm im not sure about the plastic cover thing, but I think vft's usually prefer some circulation. The cover is for humidity, but i dont tHiNk that it will need that much humidity, unless the area you live in has humidity much below like, 50%. I'm from nyc, and the weather now is okay for my flytraps. I think pretty much leave it in a nice sunny place without the cover and in a pan of water.

 

[BuMbOiMk]

darn so many people beat me to it~
o yeah dont do this TamaFreak unless the others here also say so....

but I read online somewhere that the reason you can't feed it hamburger meat or other 'normal' stuff humans eat is because of the concentration of certain things and the fat content is very concentrated or something. So does that mean the trap should be cut off before too much of the hamburger meat is 'absorbed' by the trap??

O yeah Tama, there is also the dormancy issue but you won't have to deal with that for another 1-2 months...

 

[TamaFreak]

Thanks a bunch everyone!

This is a great website there are so many nice people willing to help. Yay! Should i take the traps off that have the meat? theres only 2 with meat.

 

[PlantAKiss]

Hi Tama

I just wanted to say welcome to the forums! Don't worry, you made the same mistakes most people do. Your plant should be ok. Just follow the advice already given. VFTs like a lot of sun or really bright light. You can either cut off the burger'ed traps or just wait 'til they die naturally and then snip off just the trap. The rest of leaf will continue to make food for the plant thru photosynthesis.

Let us know how you're plant is doing.

Suzanne

 

[dfalkanger]

A recent observation I have made with my traps is, if I just let a rotting trap die off naturally it seems that the whole plant does a lot better, the ends of a cut off leaf tend to grow mold, and a naturally dying trap seems so just blend in with the peat moss eventually. This works well for me. Since I have been visiting this forum all of my CP's are in tip top excellent shape. Thanks to all the great tips I got from all you wonderful people, thanks to everyone