Question
hi, a while back i found a bunch of earwigs a.k.a rollie pollies and  i fed a couple to my venus flytrap i think the traps didnt like the earwig they kinda went brown and i think died. i wanted to know if this happened because of not liking the earwig or other causes.

Answer
Hi Miguel,

Flytraps are not picky about what ends up in their traps.  However, if you plan on hand-feeding them, the insects should fit comfortably inside the trap. If it's too large, the insect won't get full digested, which can cause the traps to turn black.  Traps will also turn black if it's close to the end of its life cycle.  They only last for about 2 months and then die back.  Look for new growth coming up in the center of the plant.

It's also not at all necessary to feed flytraps.  They will capture bugs on their own.  For more information about growing flytraps, read the care sheet on our main website:
http://www.cobraplant.com/caresheets

Good growing!
Jacob Farin