Venus Flytrap (Dionaea Muscipula)
"The Venus Flytrap, a devouring organism, aptly named for the goddess of love." -Tennesse Williams. The Dionaea Muscipula, also known as the Venus Flytrap is the most famous of all carnivorous plants. Its "clam-like" leaves trap bugs in seconds. According to the book "The Savage Garden" by Peter D' Amato, the exact mechanism of the trap is still a mystery that is hotly debated.
Expect some traps / leaves to be closed upon receipt of shipment. This is normal. They will open within 24-48 hours.
*Put pot in a tray with enough water (preferably rain or distilled) to wet just the bottom part of the pot.
Note that the age of the leaf or size of its prey, a trap / leaf may turn black after one meal. This is expected. Remember to trim all dead traps / leaves off the plant.
Source: "The Savage Garden" book written by Peter D'Amato, available at Amazon. You may also google for other sources as well. Questions? Contact us
Don’t feed your plant more than once or twice a month. It will be perfectly happy on this amount of food. If you really have to watch it eat then limit your feeding to once a week or even once every ten days
A good feeding cycle for optimal growth is once every other week (once meaning one bug to the whole plant, not each trap). Any insect that fits comfortably within the trap should be fine--flies, spiders, small crickets, small grasshoppers, large ants, small slugs, or ladybugs make great food.
Live insects is the preferred food of your plant but catching a live insect and cutting it into small pieces is an easy way to feed your plant. Each individual trap can be fed.
A dead bug can be fed if it didn’t die from bug spray.
Do not feed the traps insects that are too big--if the trap cannot close completely around it, it may catch an infection and die.
Never feed your plants hamburger or other protein based meats.
Without food, the plant may survive, but it will not grow very well.
If the trap catches a few bugs, it will die and a new bigger trap will grow in its place. Be sure to cut off any traps that begin to brown. If the trap is closed by a finger or another non-food item, it will open again within a day or two. It is safe to trigger the traps by hand, but the trap will eventually die if it is triggered too much
Springing the traps with your fingers or a pointed device zaps the energy from the plant that could possibly weaken the plant and even kill it.