Question
Could you please help.  

Situation:
I have just recently discovered that I have been using the Miracle Grow Products (MGP) Perlite and sphagnum peat on all my pitcher plants; Flava, Leucophyllas, Purpureas, VFT's. Here is the situation. Some Sarracenias have been planted in the MGP for about two to five years no change. I have been watering the plants heavily from the top of the pot with distilled/RO water 2-3 times a week sometimes weekly throughout the lives of the plants. Dreadfully I have recently found out that MGP will kill carnivorous plants I want to get to work right away to change the soil to Premier Sphagnum; 2-parts peat + 1-part silica sand + 1-part perlite.  I have all the materials luckily ACE Hardware stocks sells the premier peat. Perlite from Armstrong Garden.  Fortunately/surprisingly, as I read the CP blogs on how MGP is bad for Carnivorous Plants, my Sarracenias and Dorsera Capensis Sundews "HAVE BEEN and ARE" growing well and none have died or none seems to be showing signs of deterioration. But I am still weary and want to repot all of them. My fear is any day or any time the plants will start to die and I will lose all of them. By the way, my VFT's did not go unharmed. Out of 25 Venus Fly Traps, 10 have shrunk down to where the crown is about 1/8 of an inch across. 12 have ALL BUT disappeared. (ONLY THE PEAT/SAND IS LEFT) I plucked one plant out of the soil just out of curiosity and there was not a single root under it. I painfully realize that all my VFT's are lost.

Question 1:
Inspite of being planted in MGP, Sarracenias are now growing flower stocks with the tallest being 12 inches high and growing. Some Flava and Leuco Pitchers are starting to sprout as well. My question is can I go ahead and repot these plant "bare root", that are coming out of dormancy? Will repoting hurt or effect the plants growth or if plant is OK with the MGP compost let it grow for now and wait until the next season to change soil? I will repot all my other plants that have not come out of dormancy.

Question 2:
Am I just lucky that my plants survived for all this time before I beacame aware of the mistake? I really am gratefull to the folks that post and answer the CP blogs but I am wondering if my plants survived because I heavily watered plants from top of the pot allowing water to fully drain? Is this so? Did this reduce the amount of nutrients in the soil or are Sarracenias just more tolerable to MPG?  My Dorsera Capensis Sundews have always survived the worst like totally rotted, dead in a dried out pot for several days only to come back stronger. Regardless, I will repot all my Sundews immdediately. Did watering heavily help the plants?

Answer
Hello Rodney,

Yes, Sarracenias are somewhat more tolerant of fertilizers from what I have read. They tend to generate fewer carnivorous leaves and can still weaken from fertilized soil, but less often than the other carnivores. In any case, best bet is to repot them immediately into acidic mix. As you indicated, the Flytraps and Sundews do tend to die off and rot away, but as you can see, D. capensis is one tough plant. Watering from the top also probably helped to drain out some of the fertilizers.

You can repot most carnivorous plants any time of the year without fear actually, but the time to do so most effectively is right after dormancy. Repotting your Sarracenias after a good rinsing of the roots should be no problem. Just rinse the roots of all your plants with distilled or reverse osmosis water and repot them in your unfertilized mix. Those that are still strong will be fine, but the Venus Flytraps are very sensitive to fertilizers, so rot rather thoroughly. You might need to obtain some more later after spring is fully in effect. If you are worried about the plants health after repotting them in mid-flower you can clip off the flower stalks, but so long as they are in full sun, they should be fine regardless.

Christopher