Question
I have a western window in the bathroom that is a major heatsource in the summer. It gets full sun in the afternoon.

My question is that if I apply one of those plastic film filters to the window that blocks all the UV and most of the heat, will that also block the light that carnivorous plants need to grow well?

Answer
Hi John,

All plants need ultraviolet light to grow properly, so anything that blocks UV light will decrease plant growth.  Many homeowners discovered this the hard way when they retrofitted their homes with UV-blocking windows.  While these types of windows decreases fading and increases the life of your furniture, it decreases the health of plants.

You can experiment to see if the amount of UV light that comes through the glass is sufficient enough to sustain health.  If the plant looks leggy and loses color, then you may need to supplement with fluorescent lights.  Regular fluorescent lights emit some amounts of UV light, which is why they are the lights of choice for indoor growing.

For more information about growing tropical carnivorous plants, read our care sheets online:
http://www.cobraplant.com/caresheets

Good growing!
Jacob Farin