Question

Flowering Fly Trap   QUESTION: I have 2 baby Venus Flytrap plants that I bought from you that are growing
outdoors in partil-full sun.They are doing great ! However , Both have shoots
and one has shoots that is 5 inch long ( ? ) Is this normal ? Dont they flower and
seed before they go dormant ? When should I cut the shoots ?

ANSWER: Hi Brenden,

Yes, those are flower stalks.  As long as you grow your plants in full sun, let them flower.  It's a myth that you need to cut them off.  That myth started from growers who grew their plants incorrectly, such as indoors.  Low light will weaken a plant, and flowers will further weaken a weak plant.  If you grow your plant correctly, such as outside in full sun, then your plant will be strong and robust enough to deal with flowers.  At our nursery, we grow our flytraps outdoors, so your plants are certainly healthy and strong.

By September, the seed pods will be ready for harvest. The seeds are ready when you see small shiny beads where the flower used to be.  Those are your seeds.

For information on how to germinate your seeds, visit the care sheet section of our website:
http://www.cobraplant.com/caresheets

Good growing!
Jacob Farin

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------


Feeding VFT   QUESTION: My Venus Flytrap plant is still a small young plant. I fed it a house fly and it
seems to very healthy. Is it too early to feed at this time ? How often should they
eat when they are still young plants ?

Answer
Before I give you my answer, I want to warn you that you may not like my answer.  You see, I don't regard feeding carnivorous plants a priority or absolutely essential.  They're not animals or pets.  Carnivorous plants are plants, plain and simple.  As with any plant, the most important part of its care is sunlight, water and proper soil.  If any of these areas are improper, then no matter how many bugs you feed your carnivorous plant, it will never thrive.

Bugs only supply the building materials for plants to grow, but they do not give the plant energy.  All plants get their energy from sunlight.  Without it, they whither.  Carnivorous plants differ from regular plants in that they get their nutrients or building materials through their leaves rather than through their roots.

So I actually deemphasize the bug feeding part of the care.  Carnivorous plants have also adapted to survive on minuscule amounts of nutrients, so they really don't need a lot of bugs.  This is why I always recommend making sure the plant gets the proper sunlight, water and soil.  A healthy plant will be adept at catching bugs on its own.  Since your plants are outdoors, there will be an abundance of flies for it to capture.

With that said, if you happen to kill an insect and want to feed it to you plant, you can do so.  Just make sure the insect is small enough to fit into the trap, otherwise it'll rot the leaf.

Good growing!
Jacob Farin