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PunkRotten
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Location: Monterey, CA.

Carnivorous plant set up?

Hi,

I got a bunch of seeds for different varieties of carnivorous plants. Things like Venus Flytrap, Sundews, Pitcher plants etc. I have a empty 10 gallon fish tank and a good light on it. What kind of growing media should I use? I also plan to seal the top with plastic wrap to keep moisture in. Maybe once in awhile throw in a dozen small crickets for them. How often should a plant get an insect? Could the plants be bunched in or do they need good spacing? Any other pointers? Thanks

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hendi_alex
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Joined: Sun Jul 06, 2008 7:58 am
Location: Central Sand Hills South Carolina

I've grown all three, and really prefer to grow them in separate containers. Also, they may need air flow more than moisture. If planting in an aquarium, I would have separate containers for each. Would have each container with a drain hole and would have a nice layer of gravel for the over flow. IMO these plants usually fail after a year or two because of salts build up in the container. My venus flytraps were doing poorly and I started flushing their container, always totally filling to the top with water, so that lots of overflow/flushing took place. Since making that adjustment the plants have done just great.

I would be hesitant to grow pitcher plants in the aquarium. These plants get quite large, and will grow very well year round outside in your location. My plants now grow in an in ground boggy garden that was made with a bottom layer of sand, a layer of leaf mold, a layer of peat moss, and a top layer of sphagnum moss.

When growing together, sundew plants which are prolific, tend to dominate the venus flytraps. So that is why IMO they do better with each growing in its own defined space.

For container growing, I have about the bottom 2/3 in peat moss and the top 1/3 sphagnum moss.

All three of these plants are easy to grow. I've maintained them for several years in open top shallow containers, about 14-16 inches across. My pots are placed on top of bottom trays which are filled with gravel.

Be sure not to fertilize and don't water with chlorinated water. Chlorinated water is fine if you let it set for at least 24 hours prior to use. My plants have always been watered with soft well water or rain water.

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PunkRotten
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Joined: Sat Apr 16, 2011 8:48 pm
Location: Monterey, CA.

Yeah I grow a Venus Flytrap and a Pitcher plant now. I use distilled water and don't fertilize. I have a dome for them but don't use it and they do fine. I put them under my grow lights to eat fungus gnats. I was wondering whether to separate them or not. The container they are in is about 4x4. I bought one of those homedepot kits. So you say the pitcher plants will grow fine outdoors in my climate? We are hot and dry over here.

The 2 seed packets I have are all mixed seeds. So I won't know what I get until they sprout.

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hendi_alex
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Location: Central Sand Hills South Carolina

Here in central S.C. we routinely have summers that give high temperatures of 90-100 degrees. The pitcher plants tolerate that as well as the winter time lows that usually make it down to the mid 20's. The plants just have to have constant moisture during the summer and as posted before, flush with plenty of water to avoid salts build up. I have successfully grown three or four varieties of pitcher plants both in planters and in the boggy garden. The purple ones were short only growing 6-8 inches tall, but the other two or three varieties grow 1-2 feet tall and grow to 6-8 inch or larger multi stemmed base. I haven't bought any new plants in several years, and currently only have one surviving pitcher plant. The ones that were lost died I think because they were neglected and dried out during the fall and winter.



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