Question
I Got a venus fly trap from lowes the other day. i took the plant out of the death cube and into some fresh peat moss perlite soil mixture. im going to make it an outdoor plant like my others. iv have had it outside the past few days in 60 to 80 degree weather. i bring it in at night because it still gets a little nippy at night. however the venus fly trap is starting to look sickly. i use all the care guides on your website and it still doesnt seem to be doing good. it has brownish green areas with are increasing on the plants leaves and traps. Im guessing its just shock from such a change. will it eventually snap out of it or should i do somthing more to keep it alive.

Answer
Hi Robert,

This actually has a very easy solution, but you're going to hate what I tell you to do.  Cut off all of the leaves/traps.  When Venus Flytraps come out of those death cubes they are often so weak the leaves can't handle normal conditions.  If a plant is fairly recent in being shipped from the nursery to the store, the hardening off process we recommend will work ok.  However, when they have been in that cube a long time their foliage is too sickly to recover.  If you cut all of the leaves off it stops the transpiration that can overtax the roots, and it gives the plant time to grow new leaves that will be healthy and normal.  

After you cut the leaves off give it about a month and and a half to grow a new set.  It will be about May when the plant starts to look good.  Like you've been doing protect it from frost at night, but your day temperatures are great.

Good Growing!

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