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The Venus flytrap is almost certainly the best known of the carnivorous plants in the world. Even among those who are less fond of botany or gardening, there is practically no one who does not think of one of these plants with the unmistakable toothed claws when it comes to carnivorous plants.
It is a plant that is easier to grow than it might seem due to its striking appearance, and it is one of the simplest carnivorous plants to care for. If you want to learn how to take care of the Venus flytrap, join us in this Green Ecologist article, because here we show you one Venus flytrap care guide.
Characteristics of the Venus flytrap
The Dionaea muscipula, call Diana flytrap in some South American countries and more commonly known as Venus flytrap, is one of the types of carnivorous plants most emblematic. It is the only species that makes up the genus Dionaea, which has its origin in North Carolina. Here you can discover 9 types of carnivorous plants.
Its leaves, which grow from a buried rhizome, form a rosette with a length between 3 cm and 8 cm, which grow horizontally. In the spring time of flowering, it gives rise to a flower stalk that grows from the very center of the plant, which is up to 20 cm in height and with a striking small white flower at the end. If you like small size plants like this one, don't miss this compilation of 16 small plants.
There are numerous cultivars of this plant, with different colorations and sizes in the traps, which are its main visual attraction. Also, did you know that with proper care, it can live more than 20 years? If you want to know more about this fascinating carnivorous plant, read on and learn about its basic care.
The traps of the Venus flytrap and its feeding
The traps to catch insects they are the most distinctive feature of the Venus flytrap, by which many recognize it. These are shaped like a mouth and are made up of two leaves ending in a kind of teeth and with sensitive hairs inside.
When the plant feels pressure inside its traps, it closes them by means of internal water pressure, in a very fast movement lasting a tenth of a second. This, however, results in a great strain on the plant, so if it closes without trapping anything, the stress load is very great, so you have to avoid touching the traps of the plant so that they are not closed in vain.
Each trap can be closed about 5 times, after which it will dry and should be pruned and removed. If it doesn't catch anything when it closes, the trap will open again in about 12 hours, whereas if it has caught an insect, it will not do so until its soft parts have been digested.
But, what do carnivorous plants eat Venus flytrap? They feed on nutrients from the soil and water, like all plants, only they can also hunt small insects and digest them to increase their supply of nutrients. They don't need them, but they will be healthier and stronger if they do.
When a Venus flytrap catches a live insect, the movements of this cause the release of the gastric juices of the plant, so put inside an insect already dead will not do no problem. Once digested, after 2 to 3 days, the plant will have absorbed its assimilable parts, leaving only the exoskeleton in its trap, which should be removed very carefully with tweezers, avoiding at all costs touching the trap so that it does not close. .
In this link you will see more information about How carnivorous plants feed.
Location for the Venus flytrap
These plants appreciate a moderate sun exposure, requiring a semi-shade exposure outdoors or indirect incidence indoors, with a window covered by a thin curtain.
If you get used to the plant slowly and progressively, we can slowly give the Venus more exposure, until reaching 6-8 hours a day, which are ideal, although always in the morning, before the intense midday sun. If you grow her indoors in low light, use a cool bulb that gives her at least 13 hours of light in close quarters.
Watering the Venus Flytrap
It's very important do not water the Venus with tap water due to its high content of lime and other components. Always use distilled water, rainwater collection or osmosis product. You can buy it in most specialized establishments if you have no way to collect or distill it yourself.
It is advisable to water the plant by putting a dish with water underneath from the container, thus allowing the soil to absorb moisture through the drainage holes. In the warm months, let the water in the dish dry for no more than a day or two and renew it, while in the cold months you can give it up to a week of dryness. In dry climates, they may need to be sprayed with water spray.
We recommend you read this other article about When to water the plants.
Substrate and compost
The substrate for this plant needs a very good drainage and a light composition. A mixture with two parts of peat, one of perlite and half of sphagnum will be ideal for all its properties. We recommend you read this other post about How to make substrate for carnivorous plants.
The plant does not need fertilizeras it extracts the equivalent of the insects it hunts. Outdoors she will catch them in her traps herself while indoors you may need to help the plant by depositing small live insects like flies in her traps.
Reproduction of the Venus flytrap
The Venus plant can reproduce asexually carefully separating the children of the rhizome. Once unearthed the separation can be seen clearly, and you will only have to gently extract them and plant them in a new pot or plot of land, preferably in semi-shade so that it has time to recover from the transplant.
Why is my Venus flytrap turning black
A Venus flytrap black It can be due to several things:
- A trap that has exhausted its useful life will dry up and die naturally, with absolutely nothing negative.
- If you have exposed your plant to too intense a sun it will also hurt it, so it is possible that it will burn and dry out.
- Another common mistake is to water the plant with running water, which will damage it and can even kill it.
- Applying compost can also damage it and turn it black, as the roots of these plants are very sensitive, and compost can burn and kill them.
- In addition, in winter these plants lose their leaves, which darken and dry out, which is also normal, although you should never expose them to temperatures below -3 ºC, not even occasionally.
Now that you have learned all this about how to take care of a Venus flytrap, here below we leave you a video so that you understand more this information about the care of this plant and, in addition, we encourage you to delve into the world of plants of this type with this another guide on Caring for carnivorous plants.
If you want to read more articles similar to Caring for the Venus flytrap, we recommend that you enter our category of Cultivation and care of plants.
