Growing from seed

[Tynan]

Hello all. I bought a VFT seed kit at Christmas on a whim. Set it up as instructed. I wasn't expecting anything given the cold dark winters here in the UK. However on checking it today, there are many very very small green leaves that I assume to be the VFTs. I have had it covered with plastic on a south facing window sill in a saucer of rain water. Since starting it 6 weeks ago, the instructions have vanished. I remember the next step was to uncover the pot immediately. After that.....

Would anyone be so good as to take over from there?

 

[Tristan]

Hello Tynan,
Simply move them to a place with bright light and humidity above 40%. The seedlings grow best at room temperature. One more thing it will be about a week before they put out any real traps and they will be very small.

 

[Alvin Meister]

I assume you know all about keeping care of them with regards to water etc. since you've got them this far.
Keep them on a windowsill, preferably where there's a radiator nearby. In my house (Lancashire) it's pretty chilly on an unheated windowsill at the moment.
Now you'll have to wait about 2 years to get decent sized plants

 

[Tynan]

Lancashire!! If you can do it in the grim dark north I should in the sunny sarf. Two years? You kidding? I need my fly problem this summer dealt with this year!

 

[Alvin Meister]

Oh yeah, I grow tons of flytraps here in the northern wilderness

Sorry to break it to you but it takes a couple of years to get a decent sized flytrap from seed - that's why nurseries use tissue culture (test tubes and agar) to grow them. Persevere with your seedlings but find a nursery that sells VFTs. They usually appear for sale in May, or I could e-mail you where to get them from now.
Visit www.sarracenia.com/faq.html for some info on your seedlings.

 

[Tynan]

I'm not even sure they qualify as seedlings yet! No big deal. It was just an impulse buy. At least I didn't buy the banana seed kit! Thanks anyway.