Question
Hi

I'm from Cairo, Egypt and was very interested in growing venus flytraps, sarracenia and nepenthes.

I would like to know what type of carnivorous plants/hybrids will grow in our climate as it is quite hot and dry all year round.  

I was also considering growing a few at my summer house in the North Coast of Egypt where its a lot more humid. Any advice on what types of plants to purchase would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks for your time

Moustafa Moussa

Answer
Hi Moustafa,

Nepenthes are going to be your best plants, since they are already tropical plants.  Those that are heat lovers, such as some of the lowlanders, would be good candidates, especially for your North Coast home. You may still need to accommodate them shade cloth, gravel trays and/or misters to help with their humidity needs.  Many can tolerate lower humidity once they acclimate, but North Africa may be a bit extreme unless you tend to have locally higher humidity around the Nile river.  

I checked some climate statistics for Cairo, and it looks like your humidity ranges from 25-84%.  That's not that bad.  It higher humidity than we experience in the U.S. in the desert southwest such as Arizona and Nevada.  Those states usually see 10% humidity during the day in summer.

Other plants to consider are Dewy Pines, (Drosophyllum lusitanicum).  They are already semi-desert, sub-tropical plants, and can easily be grown from seed.  The Wooly sundews from Northern Australia would also appreciate your climate since they are heat and sun lovers.  Sundews such as Drosera indica and Drosera burmanii are also good candidates since they are summer annuals growing quickly form seed in the heat of the summer, set seed, then die.  You simply collect seed when they bloom and start over.

Temperate species such as Venus Flytraps and Sarracenia are going to be challenging, especially Venus Flytraps.  They have to have a couple months of cool dormancy, or they will slowly decline and die.  Sarracenia cold be worth a try since many will tolerate tropical conditions.  We have growers in Hawaii who do fairly well with them in their climate.

Other factors to consider are water and soil.  You'll need to consistent source of purified water (low mineral).  This usually mean a reverse osmosis filter since many desert climates have very hard water.  You'll also need access to peat moss and or sphagnum moss since it's the soil media for most carnivorous plants.

We also have a chapter in our volume #1 DVD on growing plants in desert climates.  That can be found here:  http://www.growcarnivorousplants.com/Grow-Carnivorous-Plants-DVD-1-p/01111.htm

Hope this helps.

Good Growing!

Jeff Dallas
Sarracenia Northwest
http://www.growcarnivorousplants.com