Author: Kellie

If you own a Venus flytrap, you might be interested in feeding it. This article goes into great detail on how to feed a Venus flytrap.

When feeding a Venus flytrap, employ bugs that can fit inside a trap and drop the insect in between the trap’s lobes. Venus flytraps are not designed to digest human food; they prefer insects and arachnids. They can consume dead of live prey.

Venus flytraps growing outdoors often capture their own food, whereas Venus flytraps growing indoors often struggle to capture bugs.

The feeding process is not hard, but you must follow the instructions below to avoid harming your plant. For example, many people often overfeed their Venus flytrap which can cause harm.

As a general rule, feed your Venus flytrap once every two to six weeks. Use a single bug and feed only one trap of the entire plant. The insect must be small enough to fit inside the trap. It can be dead or alive, however, the feeding instructions vary depending on this factor.

Consuming insects is essential to your plant’s health, therefore ensuring they capture bugs is important. Keep on reading to get the full instruction on how to feed your plant.

What Venus Fly trap eat	Flies, ants, beetles, crickets, worms, spiders, gnats, and other insects
What you shouldn’t feed a Venus Fly trap	Human food such as fruit, meat, vegetables, and candy
Feeding frequency	Feed once every 2-6 weeks
Feeding quantity	One insect at a time that is small enough to fit inside a trap

The Venus Flytrap Feeding Process

In the wild, Venus flytraps live in inferior growing conditions. The soil in the area is very poor. As a result, they are unable to gather critical nutrients from the ground, like Nitrogen, Potassium, and Phosphorus.

Venus flytraps produce most of their food through the photosynthesis process. They can live just through photosynthesis thanks to the abundance of light and water. However, their diet is not complete without consuming bugs.

Venus flytraps capture and digest bugs inside of their leaves. Through digestion, they extract essential nutrients to boost their diet. Even though consuming those insects is not required, Venus flytraps with access to feed tend to grow faster and appear to be a lot healthier.

In the outdoors, Venus flytraps can capture their own prey. But indoors or in highly urbanized areas, it can be difficult for the plant to obtain vital nutrients from their victims. In those cases, the owner can choose to feed their plant. In the next section, I will explain the process.

The following list contains a summary of best practices when feeding Venus flytraps:

• Outdoor Venus flytraps do not require feeding
• Feed your plant once every 2 to 6 weeks
• Only feed insects or spiders to your Venus Flytrap
• The insects must fit inside the trap
• Do not feed your plant during dormancy
• Baby Venus flytraps do not need to be fed

How to Feed a Venus Flytrap

The following steps describe how to feed a Venus flytrap. Read them carefully:

1.- Get the food ready: Start by finding a proper insect or spider to feed your plant. It can be dead or alive. There is a whole list of options below. But for now, focus on getting an insect that is small enough to fit inside one of the traps of your plant.

2.- Prepare the prey: Once you have the bug, you must get it ready. Dried-up bugs must be rehydrated. Just add a few drops of water to the dead bug and let it absorb the water. Live bugs do not need any preparation. But, since it is a live bug, you should get comfortable handling it. You can use your hands, or perhaps you are more comfortable employing tweezers or chopsticks.

3.- Locate the trigger hairs: Observe the inside of the trap you are about to feed and locate the three trigger hairs in each lobe. They can be hard to identify. The filaments are very thin, and they are located in the center of the lobe. The picture below shows their location.

When feeding a Venus flytrap, you must stimulate the trigger hairs. Something must touch them twice within a few seconds for them to close.

4.- Insert the bug: Grab the insect and place it inside the lobes of your selected trap. Live insects will make contact with the trigger hairs right away, and the trap will close on them. With dead prey, you must stimulate the trigger hairs yourself. When I employ dead prey, like in the picture below, I follow this effective strategy. I grab the bug with chopsticks and place it inside the traps with a brushing motion. At that time, I make sure I have touched the trigger hairs at least two times. Then, I quickly remove the tool out of the leaf, leaving the bug behind.

5.- Continue to stimulate: Now, the trap should have closed. However, Venus flytraps take their time to close their leaves completely. First, they go into a semi-closed state. Like in the picture below, the lobes have intertwined, but they are not fully closed. During this stage, the plant is sensing for further stimuli to start the digestion process. The presence of stimuli indicates the plant has caught live prey.

When you employ a live insect, the bug will try to fight for its life. But, its attempt to space will only make things harder, as the traps will close entirely after a few seconds.

For dead bugs, you must complete an additional action: stimulate the leaves. Use your fingers or a tool to press the sides of the trap. Press them gentle multiple times. Do it slowly but consistently for about 30 seconds. Then, the trap will close completely. If it does not close, continue to stimulate for another 30 seconds or until the trap is sealed shut.

6.- Monitor the leaf: You made it! You have fed your Venus flytrap. Now, it is time to verify the feeding was successful. Leave your plant alone for the next few days, but occasionally observe the closed trap. The digestion process will take several days or even weeks, so do not expect it to reopen soon. Just keep an eye on the leaf and verify it didn’t wither.

The main reasons why a leaf withers after a feeding are two:

• The insect was too big for the Venus flytrap, and the plant was unable to process it completely.
• The leaf was going to die due to maturity, and it was ready to wither.

Keep on reading to learn how often to feed a Venus flytrap and the prey sizing considerations. Then, you will avoid making mistakes when feeding your plant.

Feeding Frequency

Venus flytraps take a long time to digest one single insect. As a result, they do not need to be fed too often. Generally, you want to follow these rules:

• Only feed one single trap of the whole plant. The nutrients from one bug will be enough for the plant.
• Allow 2-6 weeks between feedings. It is better to let the plant rest between feedings and do not risk overfeeding the plant.
• Wait until the plant has thoroughly digested the previous bug before feeding it again.
• Stop feeding the plant during dormancy

Which Bug Size Is Appropriate for Venus Flytraps?

Choosing the correct prey size is essential for the plant’s health. When bugs are too large for the plant, the Venus flytrap fails to digest it in an acceptable time frame. Then, the plant gives up in the process and lets the trap containing the insect wither. Your plant won’t die from losing a single leaf, but it can weaken. Also, if incorrect feeding practices continue, the plant can lose multiple leaves.

As a general rule, choose insects that can fit inside the trap. Generally, it is best to select bugs that are no larger than 1/3 of the size of the trap. When Venus fly traps are young, it is challenging to find such a small insect (besides ants). But, remember, you can break a bug and feed your plant a small enough piece.

How to Feed Baby Venus Flytraps

It is possible to feed baby Venus flytrap. But it can be very challenging. To feed a baby Venus flytrap, you need a dead bug (preferably freeze-dried), distilled water, a toothpick, and a herb grinder or a mortar and pestle. After you gather all the components, follow the instructions below:

1. Take the dried up bugs and grind them until they have a powder-like consistency.
2. Add a few droplets of distilled water to the powder and mix. Continue to add water and mix until the product looks like a paste.
3. Drain any excess of water
4. Grab the toothpick (or tweezers) and pick up a tiny little ball of the food you made. You can use your hands to shape the paste-like a small pebble.
5. Carefully place the food inside the trap of the young Venus flytrap. And make sure to activate the trap.

It is not crucial to feed baby Venus flytraps. But, it is beneficial to provide additional nutrients. You will be able to feed a baby Venus flytrap if it has at least reached a minimum size. The picture below shows a seedling. With that size, it isn’t easy to feed it without harming it. In that case, it is better to wait until it grows larger.

The Best Venus Flytrap Food Options

The previous section mentioned some information about what to feed your Venus flytrap. But, now we can go into more details on the feeding menu.

It is a common misconception that Venus flytraps only consume flies. Venus flytraps consume a variety of insects and spiders. They can even consume larger prey. Venus flytraps are carnivorous plants, they can consume meat. As a result, in the wild, they are sometimes able to capture tiny mice or frogs. But, in your home, you want to stick to an insect-only and spider-only diet. This article I wrote contains a complete list of what to feed and not to feed a Venus flytrap.

Live Prey

Venus flytraps can consume a variety of bugs like, for example, ants, flies, crickets, spiders, beetles, slugs, and caterpillar. They can consume any type of insect as long as they can fit inside the trap, and the plant can capture them.

Even though you can employ almost any type of insect, some are better suited than others. For example, beetles tend to try to fight their way out of the traps, and they can be quite strong. Slugs or caterpillars can attempt to eat their way out of their enclosure. Flying insects are difficult to handle, and they can escape easier.

Outdoors or in an external window sill, Venus flytrap might capture a variety of insects. In that case, let your plant trap its own food. It will know how to select its prey.

When choosing live prey to feed your Venus flytrap, remember you will have to follow the instructions in the previous section. Suppose you do not feel comfortable holding a bug. Or perhaps, the process is too gruesome for you, then go to the next section and choose to employ dead bugs.

Dead Insects

You can also employ dead bugs to feed your Venus flytrap. From a nutritional standpoint, dead bugs can also provide large amounts of nutrients.

It is possible to employ dead bugs you find in your home, as long as they are fresh, and they do not have any mold. Also, consider buying the feed in a pet store. Here are a few options you can find in almost any pet store: freeze-dried bloodworms, mealworms, and crickets. All three options are highly nutritious and economical. You can buy the whole container for less than $10. And it can serve you to feed multiple plants for many years. I buy dried-up bugs in amazon to feed my carnivorous plants, here is a link to buy: https://amzn.to/34QEnKv.

I do not have a preference between the three, but I try to alternate the food source every once in a while. All of these bugs are dried up and must be rehydrated before using them. You can employ a whole bug and add some droplets of water, or you can grind the bug and then add some water. Grinding the bug ensures the hydration process, but it is not always necessary.

Finally, another pro of using dead bugs is that it is easy to break up. With live feed, you must find small enough insects that fit inside a trap. With dead bugs, you do not have that problem. You can break up the dried up worm of cricket into a tiny piece and feed it to a young plant.

Can You Skip the Flytrap Feeding Process?

You can altogether skip the feeding process, but it is not recommended. Venus flytraps do not need to consume bugs for their survival. However, they develop at a faster and healthier rate when having access to feed. Consuming a single bug every two months can make a huge difference in the plant’s health.

Some people might be intimated by the process of feeding a carnivorous plant, and that is understandable. However, not feeding the plant at all might not be the best solution. Instead, consider placing the plant outdoors. Then, it can capture bugs on its own.

Many Venus flytrap owners are constantly asking about fertilizing their plant. Even though it is possible to fertilize a Venus flytrap successfully, generally, the recommendation is to skip the fertilizer. Venus can’t process the highly concentrated compounds in fertilizers. Also, fertilizing the plant is not necessary, as Venus flytraps can obtain the same benefits from capturing prey.

When NOT to Feed a Venus Flytrap

It is not always appropriate to feed a Venus flytrap. In some cases, it is more beneficial to wait before you feed the plant. Here are some concrete examples:

• Dormancy: In the winter, Venus flytraps go dormant. Dormancy is a yearly period of rest and recovery. During dormancy, it is not necessary to feed the plants. Follow this link to learn more about the dormant period.. Follow this link to learn more about the dormant period..
• Young age: When Venus flytraps are tiny seedlings or young Venus flytraps, it is a challenge to feed them. You can attempt to do it. But do not force it on small plants. They might suffer as their leaves are not fully developed. Instead, focus on providing adequate lighting and a humid environment.
• Not enough research: Do not attempt to feed a Venus flytrap if you haven’t read the instructions in this article or other guide. Without some basic knowledge, like the appropriate food portions and options, you can end up harming the plant.
• Adjusting to a new environment: Venus flytraps, like any other plant, take some time to adapt to a new environment. Avoid feeding your plant when it has been exposed to some changes. For example, wait a few weeks before feeding a plant that has just been repotted or has just been shipped to a new location.
• Recovering stage: Venus flytraps are prone to pests, fungus, root rot, and other related issues. Here are some solutions for root rot.. Here are some solutions for root rot.. Avoid feeding a Venus flytrap when it is sick or in the recovery stage. Do not risk losing leaves or applying unwanted stress to a plant in a delicate state.

Venus Flytrap Care Considerations: Light vs Food

Venus flytraps require good lighting and access, among other things, to stay healthy. But what is more important? The lighting requirement is the most critical for Venus flytrap. These plants need at least 6 hours of sunlight to stay healthy.

The light exposure requirement is more critical due to photosynthesis. It is a crucial process that provides the vast majority of substance for the plant. Still, consuming bugs provides a nutrient boost.

More Food vs More Light Signal

Have you ever wondered if your plant is receiving enough light or enough food? It is normal to doubt your setup. Venus flytraps have unique requirements.

Luckily, Venus flytrapS gives us meaningful signals about their health. Usually, Venus flytraps exhibit bright red and burgundy colors. The burgundy is inside the traps, and the rest is green. When a Venus flytrap is not receiving enough light, the interior of the lobes loses the red coloring. The lobes turn to be almost only green. The reason is simple. The plant is not receiving enough light; therefore, it must focus solely on photosynthesis.

The red coloring will reappear when the plant is exposed to proper lighting. Then, the new burgundy interior will help attract victims to consume.

Before you get started feeding your plant, confirm your whole setup is proper. Like you just learned, adequate lighting is a necessary element for the plant’s wellbeing. Also, here is a link to a very detailed article on Venus flytrap care. You can use it as a checklist to confirm your plant has all it needs.

Ultimate Venus Flytrap Care Guide – Free Care Sheet Included

Related Questions

What do indoor Venus fly traps eat?

Indoor Venus flytraps will occasionally catch a bug. But it all depends on the availability of insects rooming around. If no bugs are available, the plant won’t have access to feed. In that case, the owner can feed the plant directly.

Can Venus flytrap consume human food?

Venus flytraps are not designed to consume human food. They are small plants that have evolved to capture small insects and spiders. Also, feeding human food to a Venus flytrap can harm it. Do not feed fruit, candy, meat, chicken, or any human food to your plant. The traps might close when you insert the food in them, but the plant won’t be capable of digesting it. The leaf will end up withering, and the food inside of it will rot.

Can Venus flytraps eat meat?

Venus flytraps are carnivorous plants. They can consume meat. Some carnivorous plant growers feed their large plants with small rodents or frogs. Big enough plants can capture them and consume them. However, it is only possible with tiny prey.

How does a Venus flytrap eat?

Some believe Venus flytraps chew their prey due to caricature adaptations of these plants. But, Venus flytraps use a unique method to consume their prey. Once a bug is trapped inside the leaf of a Venus flytrap. The plant will start producing enzymes inside the enclosure. The bugs will then stop fighting and drown in the digestive fluid. Then, the enzymes will continue to dissolve the body while the plant absorbs the nutrients. The Venus flytrap digests its prey by using an external “stomach” located in its leaves. Amazing!

How do Venus flytrap eat in a terrariums?

Venus flytraps do not have access to feed in close a close terrarium. That is one of the reasons why many people are discouraged about placing Venus flytraps in terrariums. However, there is a simple solution. Do not plant Venus flytraps in a closed terrarium. Instead, grow them in semi-close enclosures or greenhouse-type terrariums. Venus flytraps benefit from the humidity of terrariums, but they have other requirements besides that one.

Is your Venus flytrap flowering? This article will give you all the details you need to know about the Venus flytrap flowering process.

After reaching maturity, Venus flytraps flower every spring. They produce flower stalks that turn into flower bunches with white petals and green veins. The flowering process drains energy from the plant to focus on reproduction.

The flowering process of Venus flytraps is entirely normal. However, as a new Venus flytrap grower, you should decide if proceeding with the flowering cycle is the right choice. Also, you might be interested in propagating your plant with seeds or through flower stalks. Keep on reading for more information.

If you want to learn exactly what does it really mean when your Venus flytrap flowers, you can read this article.

The Venus Flytrap Flowering Process

Once a Venus flytrap has reached maturity, usually at about 2-4 years old, it will start producing flowers. Venus flytraps produce flowers during the spring. Usually not too far apart from exiting dormancy.

Venus flytraps produce thick cylindrical structures that are flower stalks. The flower stalks extend to be a lot taller than the traps and eventually turn into flower bunches.

When a Venus flytrap flowers, it produces several flower stalks. Not all at the same time, but through the same period.

Special Care During Flowering

Some Venus flytrap owners have the misconception that Venus flytrap need special care during the flowering process. During the flowering season, there are no additional care instructions. Just continue to care for your plant as you have been doing. The plant might slow down its growth to focus on reproduction, but it should not show signs of struggle.

Should I Cut the Venus Flytrap Flowers Off?

It is a general suggestion to cut the flower stalks off your plant before they grow completely to prevent the flowering process. In this section, I will give you some background information to help you decide if you should cut the flowers off your Venus fly trap. Also, this decision tree can help you:

Does the Flowering Process Kill Venus Flytrap?

Novice growers sometimes believe the flowering process can kill Venus flytraps. However, this assumption is not true.

When a Venus flytrap produces flowers, it spends substantial amounts of energy to focus on reproduction. The flowering process does not kill or harm Venus flytraps. It just drains energy that can be used for other purposes, such as general growth.

When to Stop the Flowering Process

You should cut off the flower stalks before flowering is complete if your plant is weak. Weak or sick Venus flytraps might not withstand going through the whole flowering process. For example, if your plant is recovering from a pest infestation or root rot, it might not be the best time to undergo flowering.

Healthy Venus flytraps produce flowers during the spring, and they continue to thrive through the later seasons. There is no need to skip the flowering process if you are confident your plant is in a good state. When you have kept a plant alive for 1 (or even 2+ years), you have already passed the test. Many people buy carnivorous plants without doing any research, and they end up killing them within weeks.

Suppose you are still unsure of the state of your plant. Read this article and review the care considerations. It will help you assess if you are following proper instructions when caring for your Venus flytrap.

Also, this article has a video and steps on how to remove the flower without harming the plant: Easy Steps to Remove Venus Fly Trap flowers.

Is It Ever Too Late to Remove the Stalks?

Sometimes it doesn’t make sense to remove the flower stalks anymore. As most of the process is complete and the plant has already used most of the energy allocated for reproduction. When the flower stalk has already produced a flower bud, it is too late. You can still cut it off and avoid some of the energy drainages of the flowering process. But it won’t make too much of a difference. Or, just let the buds flower and get some fantastic views and pictures of your plant with the flowers.

How to Cut the Venus Flytrap Flowers Off

Do you believe stopping the flowering process is necessary? If the answer is yes, then continue reading to learn how to remove the flowers.

The sooner you remove the flower stalks, the better. Do not wait until they grow tall. Instead, chop them off as quickly as possible. It is easy to identify the flower stalks within the plant due to their shape.

Once you have identified the flower stalk, use a pair of scissors to chop off the stalks from the very bottom. Remove as much of the stem as possible without harming the surrounding leaves of the center bulb. Then, dispose of the flower stalks or attempt to propagate your plant through stalk propagation.

Read the later section for more information on flower stalk propagation!

Venus flytraps produce multiple flower stalks through the season. Keep an eye on your plant for a couple of weeks. Some new flower stalks might start spurring.

What to Do With Venus Flytrap Flowers

Observing a Venus flytrap flower for the first time is exciting. But beyond just watching the flowers, you have the opportunity to propagate your plant. Through the methods below, you will be able to get more Venus flytraps with just a little bit of work.

Harvest Flytrap Seeds

You can harvest seeds from Venus flytraps, even when you have a single plant. In the wild, pollinators play a crucial role in seed production. To harvest seeds from your plant, you will act as a pollinator.

Pollination Instructions

1. Let the Venus flytrap flower. The more flower bunches, the better.
2. Gather a suitable tool for pollinators. Small paintbrushes or q-tips are appropriate.
3. Observe a flower and identify the anther and the stigma. The anther holds the pollen. And the stigma is where the pollen germinates.
4. Employ the q-tip or paintbrush to transfer the pollen from the anther to the stigma.
5. After pollinating one flower, continue with the rest. It will increase your chances of success.
6. Wait a few days to confirm the pollination was successful.

After pollinating, the fertilized flower will exhibit some changes. In the first couple of days, nothing might happen. But after, the flowers will start to dry up and die. This is normal! Just let it wither. Once the flower has dried up, it will leave capsules full of seeds. And you can get multiple seeds from each fertilized flower.

Now, it is time to collect the seeds. Carefully remove the flower remains and open it up to collect the seeds. Preferably, do it indoors. The seeds for Venus flytraps are tiny. Some light breeze can make you lose those seeds. Also, some people use a small Ziploc bag to support the area and prevent any seeds from getting lost or flying away.

The process of pollinating a plant with its own pollen is called self-pollination. Such an approach will produce good seeds. However, cross-pollination tends to make better specimens. Suppose you have more than one Venus flytrap in your home. Consider pollinating one with the pollen of the other.

The Seeds: Storage and Sowing

Now that you have the seeds, you can go ahead and start producing Venus flytrap seedlings. The process is simple:

1. Gather a spacious container with drainage. Also, get a tray to go under the container.
2. Fill it with carnivorous plant soil and saturated with distilled water. Here is a link to carnivorous plant soil you can use.
3. Add a weak fungicide to prevent fungus outbreaks.
4. Sow the seeds in the carnivorous plant soil. Sprinkle them around and separate them if possible.
5. Press the seeds lightly towards the ground.
6. Fill out the tray with distilled water to keep the environment moist.
7. Keep the seeds at room temperature with access to sunlight and a humid medium.
8. Venus flytrap seeds germinate in 6-8 weeks after sowing.

Also, you do not have to sow the seeds right away. You can wait to sow them in the next week or month. However, if you plan on storing them for a few months, place them under refrigeration.

Venus Flytrap Flower Stalk Propagation

Besides growing Venus flytraps from seeds, you can propagate these plants through stalk propagation. It is possible to attempt this method even if the plant has not flowered. But, the flower stalks have to grow to be successful at stalk propagation.

These are the instructions for Venus flytrap stalk propagation:

1. Find a plastic or glazed ceramic pot with drainage. Also, gather a tray or plate to place under the pot.
2. Make some carnivorous plant soil with proper aeration and drainage. For example, a 2:1 ratio of peat moss and perlite is a common and effective choice.
3. Add distilled water to the soil until it has completely saturated with water.
4. Place the humid soil in the pot.
5. Add distilled water to the water plate and place the pot right on top. We will be watering this pot from the bottom and keeping a constantly humid environment.
6. Wait until the stalks have grown a reasonable size. You can wait until then produce flower buds or when they are midway through growing.
7. Use sharp scissors and cut the flower stalk. Cut the stems from as close to the bulb as possible. And cut off the flower bud (if applicable)
8. Grab the flower stalk and cut it into smaller sections. For example, a 3-inch stalk cutting is a reasonable size.
9. Now, you have two options. Place the cutting vertically and burry half an inch of the stalk underground with the rest sticking out. Or place the stalk cuttings horizontal to the ground and press it against the ground without burying it. Then, push some of the soil to cover the ends of the stalk.

You are all set. Continue to keep the environment humid and place under sunlight. The stalks cuttings start generating roots after a few weeks. Be patient and monitor the progression.

Curious Fact About The Flowers in Venus Flytraps

The Venus flytrap is a unique plant. Its trapping mechanism is one of the most complex ones observed in the plant kingdom. Also, the closing motion of its traps is swift compared to other plant motion. But, not all of its adaptations are focused on the leaves or the trapping mechanism. The flowers have also adapted to provide maximum efficiency.

Have you ever wondered how do Venus flytrap flowers get pollinated? Venus flytrap capture and consume bugs, which are usually the most successful pollinator. Do they rely solely on the wind or rain for pollination? Here is the distinctive explanation:

When you observe a Venus flytrap during the flowering process, you will notice that the traps grow 4-5 inches in length, but the flowers surpass the traps by a considerable height difference. The flowers sit on top, and the leaves stay close to the ground.

The Venus flytrap has evolved to separate its flowers from its leaves to avoid consuming pollinators. The plant keeps pollinators and food at two different levels. This is just another fascinating adaptation of the Venus flytrap.

Source: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2018/02/venus-flytrap-pollen-eat-insects-north-carolina-bog-spd/#close

Related Questions

Why would a Venus Fly Trap flower in the winter?

Venus flytraps usually flower in the spring. However, they can bloom in any season when the conditions are not similar to their natural habitat. For example, when grown indoors without dormancy, some Venus flytrap flower during the winter. Follow this link to learn more about the dormant period.. Follow this link to learn more about the dormant period.. Also, some plants might produce flowers in unusual times due to sudden changes. For example, when a plant is transported to a different hemisphere, its seasonal clock might be off by a few months.

What do the flowers mean in Venus flytraps?

Venus flytraps only produce flowers when they have reached maturity. It takes the plant 3-4 years to achieve maturity. Then, they produce flowers every single year. The flowers are not a sign of health but a signal the plant is ready to start reproductive functions.

Why do Venus flytrap flowers turn black?

Venus flytrap flowers wither due to two reasons: successful pollination or age. However, the fertilized flower leave seeds behind as they turn black.

Growing a Venus flytrap indoors is a challenging but rewarding experience. This article will guide you through all the indoor care considerations you need to master to keep your plant alive and thriving.

Venus flytraps can grow in indoor environments as long as they have access to over 6 hours of light (sunlight or artificial), high amounts of pure water, and insects for consumption. The plant should be potted in carnivorous plant soil without fertilizers or added nutrients.

The following list includes a summary of the care considerations for growing Venus flytraps.

• Light: Expose the plant to at least 6 hours of light a day. Optimally, they should receive 12 hours of light. The light source can be sunlight or artificial lighting for indoor locations.
• Soil: Do not employ standard potting soil. Instead, make or buy nutrient-free carnivorous plant soil. Only utilize nutrient-free ground for Venus flytraps.
• Watering: Only water with pure water sources, such as rainwater, distilled water, or reverse osmosis water. Water frequently to keep the soil humid at all times but do not flood it.
• Feeding: Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive, but access to feed promotes their growth.
• Dormancy: Venus flytraps must undergo dormancy every year. They need to be exposed to temperatures below 45 F to achieve the dormancy state.
• Unwanted Stress: Avoid exerting stress on your plant. Do not trigger the traps with your fingers. Also, place the plant in a tranquil location without too much contact with humans.
• Pot Characteristics: The best pots for Venus flytraps are tall, provide good insulation, and they do not leach any components to the ground.
• Trimming: Black leaves are not harmful to the plant, but you can remove them by cutting them from the base.
• Fertilizers: Do not fertilize Venus flytraps.
• Temperature: Venus flytraps are resilient plants. They can withstand temperatures between 32 F and 95 F.
• Humidity: A humid environment is optimal for Venus flytraps. Still, these plants can adapt to dry climates.
• Flowers: Venus flytraps produce flowers during the spring. You can let your plant flower or prevent it from flowering and promote the plant’s growth.
• Terrariums: It is a challenge to grow Venus flytraps in a terrarium as enclosed structures tend to be restrictive. However, it is possible as long as you ensure proper drainage and access to suitable lighting.

After you have reviewed the list above, make sure to download the printable care instructions for growing Venus flytraps indoors. Also, check the next sections. They explain in detail how to build a proper indoor setup for your Venus flytrap.

Growing Venus fly traps indoors is often a challenge. If you are worried your plant might be struggling, check out this article on common causes for black leaves and how to prevent them.

Follow this link to download the complete indoor Venus flytrap care sheet

Provide over 6 hours of direct lighting

Venus flytraps require plenty of lighting to be healthy. In an indoor setting, you have three options: find a sunny window, employ artificial lighting, or do both. The objective overall is to expose your plant to at least 6 hours of light a day (and optimally 12). Now, let’s explore each option:

Sunny window: Find a bright window or screen door that provides several hours of direct/indirect sunlight. South-facing windows are usually the brightest, but it depends on your location. Also, monitor the temperature in the window sill before you place your plant. Sometimes windows can act as a magnifying glass and dangerously heat up your plant.

Artificial lighting: Thanks to artificial lighting, you can grow Venus flytraps in almost any home (even basements with no windows). Do not employ standard light bulbs; they produce too much heat and can burn your plant. Instead, employ a plant light to fulfill your plant’s lighting requirements. You have two options:

• High output fluorescent lights
• LED plant lights

Both are inexpensive and practical options. When choosing a fluorescent light, pick cool colors that promote growth. For LED lights, choose 40-50 Watt LED lights. I have used this small LEDplant light (which costs less than $30) to grow some of my Venus flytraps, and they are thriving.

Also, make sure to buy a plant light that has an automatic timer functionality. The timer will turn the lamp on automatically for 3, 6, or 12 hours daily. I always set them to 12 hours to make sure the plants get enough light. The automatic timer functionality is a lifesaver when you go on vacation and can’t be turning on and off the lamp every day.

These are the grow lights I use to grow Venus flytraps. sundews, and pitcher plants indoors:

• Small plant light for 1-4 plants: https://amzn.to/2RsGlxr
• T8 LED light fixture for multiple plants (6500k Cool White): https://amzn.to/3uWoeh2

Sunny window and artificial lighting: Are you unsure the lighting is enough? You can employ a combination method and use artificial lighting while placing your Venus flytrap in a sunny window. However, I do recommend to do it by parts. Start by first introducing your plant to the window sill. Then, after a week, add artificial lighting. Start with only a few hours of artificial lighting and increase as you see necessary.

How to know if the lighting is enough?

Your plant will indicate if it is receiving enough light. Venus flytraps usually exhibit lime green and bright red coloring. However, when the plant does not receive enough light, the red pigment inside the lobes is lost. Red colors inside the traps are an indication of appropriate light exposure.

Disclaimer: not all varieties of Venus flytrap exhibit the same coloring scheme. Some characterize with intense red coloring in the lobes; others do not develop any color besides green.

Employ carnivorous plant soil

Venus flytrap and carnivorous plants, in general, require a particular potting medium to survive: Nutrient-free, mineral-free soil. Standard potting soil from familiar brands such as Miracle Grow can kill Venus flytraps. Those potting soil are loaded with minerals and fertilizers that kill Venus flytraps.

Employ a combination of these components to make suitable carnivorous plant soil: long-fibered sphagnum moss, peat moss, silica sand, and perlite. Some common combinations are one type of moss and silica sand or perlite. Or, both kinds of moss and silica sand or perlite. Here are a few commonly used recipes:

• 3 parts peat moss and 1 part perlite
• 2 parts peat moss, 2 parts sphagnum moss, and 1 part sand

When planted indoors, Venus flytraps are not exposed to high temperatures. Therefore, you must ensure the plant is set in soil with good drainage that prevents rotting. Always employ soil that contains at least one draining agent: perlite or silica sand. These components break up the ground, provide aeration and drainage.

Where to Get the Soil

You can buy some of the ingredients above and make your own carnivorous plant soil. When you buy the ingredients, make sure the components are pure. They shouldn’t have any minerals or fertilizers.

Also, you can buy ready-made carnivorous plant soil. Amazon and Etsy are great places to find good quality soil in a small or medium-size quantity. Just search for carnivorous plant soil, and you will find many options.

Water frequently with distilled water or rainwater

First, never employ tap water or bottled water for your Venus flytrap. Always utilize pure water sources, such as:

• Distilled water
• Reverse osmosis water
• Rainwater

Stick to the water in the list and your plant will be healthy.

Venus flytraps prefer humid soil mediums. Water your Venus flytrap often to keep the ground moist at all times (in this guide I can teach you exactly how much water do you need for Venus flytraps)  (in this guide I can teach you exactly how much water do you need for Venus flytraps). Once it is almost dry, water it again. Never let the soil go completely dry.

The water consumption of Venus flytraps varies through the seasons. However, when placed indoors, the variations will be minimal since the temperatures remain stable.

Indoors, Venus flytraps have higher risks of developing root rot due to overwatering. Luckily is is possible to save a Venus flytrap with root rot (here is how you solve it). You must be careful watering your plant. After you poured the water, use your fingers to touch the ground. The ground should be humid, yet not damped or flooded. Venus flytraps do not grow in swamps; also, they are not aquatic plants. But, they do like moist mediums with high humidity.

Feed your Venus flytrap once a month

Venus flytraps, just like other carnivorous plants, capture insects with their trapping mechanisms. Then, they digest those insects and absorb key nutrients. Those nutrients they extract from prey are not required for the plant’s survival; they are only a boost to their diet. At the end of the days, Venus flytraps produce its own food through photosynthesis.

Venus flytraps benefit from consuming an occasional bug. Outdoor Venus flytraps can capture their own food. Indoors, it is a major challenge.

When you grow Venus flytraps indoors, you will have to take care of the feeding for the most part (sometimes indoor plants do capture a lost bug). This section will teach you the basics of how to feed your plant.

Food options: Feed your Venus flytrap with insects or arachnids only. Do not experiment with human food. The plant won’t be able to process it. You can buy live insects or buy dried up ones, like the ones in the pictures below:

You can buy the freeze-dried insects in almost any pet store. They are common food supplies for reptiles and fish. Before you feed this food to a Venus flytrap, you must rehydrate the worm, just add a few droplets of water.

Feeding basics:

• Choose an insect that is small enough to fit inside the trap of your Venus flytrap
• You only need to feed one trap in the whole plant
• Allow for 2-6 weeks between feedings
• Do not feed a Venus flytrap during dormancy
• Avoid feeding the plant when it is sick or adjusting to a new environment.

Feeding instructions:

1. Prepare the bug: If the bug is alive, make sure you have it under control. And dried-freeze bugs need to be dehydrated.
2. Insert the bug inside the trap: Place the prey in the center of the trap and attempt to stimulate the trigger hairs inside the lobes.
3. Let the trap close: After the trigger hairs are stimulated, the lobes will close.
4. Continue to stimulate (dead bugs): When you use a dead bug, the trap must be stimulated to trick the plant into believing it caught live prey. Use your fingers or a small tool like tweezers or chopsticks and press the sides of the trap together. Repeat the action for a minute and then stop.

Feeding a Venus flytrap is not particularly hard, but it is all about mastering the technique. Improper feeding can kill the plant’s leaves. If you would like to get all the details about Venus flytrap food options and complete feeding instructions, check this resource:

Venus Flytrap Best Food Options (a Beginners Guide With Pictures)

Ensure your Venus flytraps go dormant once a year

Venus flytraps require a period of dormancy every year. During dormancy, the plant hibernates or rest for 2-3 months during the winter.

While dormant, Venus flytraps do not look its best. They tend to shrink in size; they lose a bunch of leaves and focus on growing its roots rather than leaves. Even though it might not sound appealing to make your plant dormant, it is a necessary process. When a Venus flytrap skips several dormancies, the plant dies.

Indoors, it is impossible to make your Venus flytrap go dormant. Venus flytraps need to be exposed to temperatures below 45 F (7 C) to achieve dormancy. So, you must place your plant in a cold location to achieve dormancy.

Place your plant in a porch, outside a window, in a cold basement or garage during the winter months. After a few weeks in cold temperatures, you will notice some changes in your plant. Then, let your plant experience the dormancy period. Do not be too worried about the loss of leaves and sluggish look. The plant will look down during its resting period.

Care During Dormancy:

During dormancy, it is best to give Venus flytrap more independence. Follow these instructions to keep your plant healthy through the winter:

• There is no need to feed Venus flytraps during dormancy (find more information about venus flytrap dormancy in this article) (find more information about venus flytrap dormancy in this article)
• Continue watering the plant often, but space out the watering frequency. The plant will consume less water.
• Do not apply fertilizers to the plant.
• Slowly introduce the plant to lower lighting at the beginning of winter. Then, slowly reintroduce the plant to light when exiting dormancy.
• Avoid extreme temperatures below freezing.

Avoid trigerring the leaves and causing stress

The trapping mechanism of the Venus flytrap is quite complex. Also, controlling those traps that open and close takes up large amounts of energy from the plant. When handling a Venus flytrap, you should avoid triggering the traps. The only time when the leaves should close is during feeding. Touching a Venus flytrap and playing with its traps won’t kill the plant, but it weakens the leaves and eventually causes leaf loss.

Indoors, Venus flytraps are prone to more manual stress. For best results, place the plant in a tranquil area. For example, avoid placing a Venus flytrap in a window sill if it will continuously be in contact with a flowing curtain. Also, consider putting the plant out of reach of small children or pets.

Use tall pots with drainage

Choose the appropriate pot for your Venus flytrap by considering three factors: size, material, and drainage.

Size: Venus flytraps have long roots, and they grow well in tall pots. In terms of diameter, the optimal size for a Venus flytrap depends on the plant’s dimensions. A small Venus flytrap can grow well in a 2-inch pot (diameter). As it grows, transfer the plant to 4 and 6-inch pots.

Materials: The best pot materials for Venus flytrap pots are plastic, glazed ceramic, and Styrofoam. Avoid un-glazed ceramic, clay, and terracotta pot. Those materials leach minerals to the ground that harm Venus flytraps. Glass and metal pots are acceptable materials. However, they do not provide good insulation. Only employ if the plant is not exposed to extreme temperatures.

Drainage: Always employ pots with a drainage hole. It is not only essential to have soil with good drainage and aeration, but also a pot with a drainage hole.

Trim leaves when they turn black

When the leaves in Venus flytraps wither, they turn to a dark black color. New Venus flytrap owners tend to get worried when they see black leaves in their plant. However, most of the leaves wither due to age.

Generally, black leaves are no threat to the plant. They are just dead foliage. Still, you can remove it to improve the aesthetics or to clean up the pot and leave more room for growth.

Trimming or pruning a Venus flytrap is easy. Grab the black leaf and use some small scissors to cut it off as close to the center as possible. Never try pulling the leaves; you can rip off the bulb and kill the plant.

You have two options to trim the plant. First, you can cut a leaf when it is half-withered. Second, wait until it withers completely. It is beneficial to follow the second option. When a leaf starts turning black, it becomes useless to trap bugs, but it still helps in the photosynthesis process. It is better to wait until the leaf has entirely withered.

Avoid all types of fertilizers

Venus flytraps do not need fertilizers. The nutrients in the fertilizer can weaken and ultimately kill the plant. Instead of fertilizing the plant, feed the plant to provide the additional boost.

Keep Venus flytraps within 20 F to 100 F

Venus flytraps can withstand temperatures between 20 F and 95 F. In their natural habitat, they are exposed to hot summers and cold/snowy winters. Indoors, Venus flytraps won’t usually be exposed to extreme temperatures unless placed in an unheated garage or porch. Follow these two instructions:

• Do not place the plant under the scorching heat. Temperatures above 95 F are risky for the plant, as it can dry up completely.
• During the winter, do not let Venus flytrap freeze completely. They can handle the cold, but they shouldn’t freeze solid. The plant might not recover.

Increase the humidity in the environment

Venus flytraps benefit from humid environments. In the wild, Venus flytraps are exposed to humidity levels surpassing 50% almost all year long. Even though Venus flytrap can adapt to dryer climates, they thrive with some humidity.

It is a challenge to provide a humid environment inside an air-conditioned home, as the air conditioning dries up the environment. However, there are a few ways to go around it:

Mist your plant: Do you use a humidifier at home? It can be beneficial for your plant. Also, using a spray bottle and misting the plant sporadically increases the humidity in the area.

Water plate strategy: Place the plant pot on top of a shallow water container, like a plate. Then, add water to the plate (1-2 inches in height). The soil will be kept moist, and the humidity index will increase.

Do not let your Venus flytrap flower

During the spring, Venus flytraps flower. The flowers are not overly unique, but they are pretty to look at. When your Venus flytrap starts flourishing, you have two options:

1. Let the plant flower.
2. Cut off the flower stalks before they flower.

Why would you choose the second option? Well, Venus flytraps spend a lot of energy producing flowers for reproduction. If you are not interested in collecting seeds, then you can skip the flowering process. Just cut the flower stalks as soon as you spot them, and the plant will have a lot more energy during the growing season.

Let the flower stalks flourish if you are interested in collecting seeds and propagating the plant. However, keep in mind that indoors your plant won’t be exposed to pollinators; you will have to pollinate the flowers yourself.

Do not grow Venus flytraps in terrariums

The only place where it is acceptable to grow Venus flytraps in a terrarium is indoors. Terrariums are made of thick plastic or glass. Placing them under direct sunlight can heat up and boil the plants inside.

Growing Venus flytraps inside a close terrarium is a challenging task. Venus flytraps like the humidity inside the terrarium, but other factors are not beneficial. For example, the plant can’t receive enough lighting, it doesn’t have access to feed, and dormancy is impossible inside a terrarium.

Instead of employing an enclosed terrarium, consider using a semi-close terrarium or a greenhouse type terrarium. In greenhouse terrariums, growers place plants in their individual pots within a glass structure (terrarium). Then, it is possible to remove the plant for dormancy and feeding.

Venus flytraps require a very specific environment to survive. You must choose the soil type and composition carefully to keep the plant healthy. In this article, I will share the best soil options for Venus flytraps and information about the potting procedure.

Venus flytraps must be planted in nutrient-free, mineral-free soil with good drainage. A combination of sphagnum moss or peat moss with silica sand or perlite are excellent potting mediums for carnivorous plants. The moss retains moisture and the silica sand and perlite prevent soil compression, provide draining and aeration.

This article will guide you through the process of mixing up the right ingredients for Venus flytrap soil. Remember, incorrect components can poison your plants with nutrients. Also, you can buy safe carnivorous plant soil online.

Are you looking for information on carnivorous plant care? If yes, you are in luck! Read this Venus flytrap care guide. In this guide I share all I know on how to grow healthy Venus flytraps.

Venus Flytrap Soil

Venus flytraps cannot process minerals or nutrients from the soil. Therefore, you must employ nutrient-free mineral-free components. Also, since Venus flytrap requires a consistently humid environment, it is beneficial to choose a potting medium with proper drainage and aeration.

You can buy carnivorous plant soil or make it yourself. Generally, you must mix two ingredients: one type of moss and a draining agent. For example, you can employ peat moss and perlite or long-fibered sphagnum moss and silica sand.

Here are a few recipes to make a carnivorous plant soil mix for your Venus flytrap:

• 4:1 or 2:1 ratio of peat moss and perlite
• 4:1 or 2:1 ratio of peat moss and silica sand
• 4:1 or 2:1 ratio of sphagnum moss and perlite
• 4:1 or 2:1 ratio of sphagnum moss and silica sand

If you struggle to find the soil ingredients in a brick-and-mortar store, consider buying them online. Here are some links to the soil brands I usually employ for all my carnivorous plants:

• Pure peat moss for carnivorous plants: https://amzn.to/3vTqirs (you might find a cheaper option on local gardening stores, make sure you buy PURE peat)
• Pure perlite: https://amzn.to/3ppckLF

You do not have to be extremely careful with the ratios. Just remember that the majority of the medium will be made up of the moss and a faction of it by the draining agent. Some people mix peat and sphagnum moss together with perlite or sand. That will work too. However, it doesn’t add much value to mix to different types of moss.

The most important thing to remember when making the soil for your plant is to choose pure ingredients. Avoid Miracle Grow and any other enriched potting medium. Instead, buy 100% pure moss without any added nutrient in fertilizers. It might seem counter-intuitive, but employing nutrient-free soil for your Venus flytrap is a must.

You can also employ pure sphagnum moss or peat moss for your Venus flytrap. However, without the presence of a draining agent, your plant is at risk of rotting. The soil for Venus flytraps must remain moist at all times. If the ground is compressed and it does not drain properly, the plant is prone to root rot. And root rot can kill the plant. Only employ a pure moss medium if you are careful watering the plant. Over-watering can end up causing rot.

Where to Get Venus Flytrap Soil?

Buy the Ingredients and DIY

Buying pure/ nutrient-free moss, perlite or sand can be a challenge. Most large gardening stores only offer potting mediums filled with fertilizers and nutrients (such as Miracle Grow). Plant nurseries are a safer bet to find pure soil materials. Just make sure to ask for help and identify pure components.

These are some examples of pure peat moss and perlite. I was able to find these ingredients in a local plant nursery. They cost me less than $20 all together and it is enough quantity to pot a few dozens of Venus flytraps.

Buy Ready-made Carnivorous Plant Soil

You can also buy already made carnivorous plant soil. With this strategy, you ensure the medium is appropriate. However, it can be a lot more expensive. Etsy and Amazon are good options to buy carnivorous plant soil. Do a quick search for carnivorous plant soil and you will find many options. Just keep an eye on the reviews to verify the authenticity. A quart of carnivorous plant soil costs on $5-10 a quart.

This is an example of an affordable and effective carnivorous plant soil mix. It usually costs less than 10 dollars for a quart. Follow the link to confirm the price on Amazon.com.

Venus Flytrap Potting Basics

This section will guide you through the process of potting a Venus flytrap. First, start by gathering all the required materials: water, pot, plant, and soil. Also, tweezers and scissors can be useful tools.

Water

Venus flytraps can only be watered with nutrient-free mineral-free water. Use a pure source of water for your plant. Here are some options:

• Rainwater
• Distilled water
• Reverse osmosis water

You will need water to prepare the soil and to water the plant after potting. Never employ tap water or bottled water for Venus flytraps. The presence of minerals and other components can kill the plant. Also, when you buy distilled water or reverse osmosis water make sure the label indicates that the water is pure. Some brands add minerals for the flavor to distilled water. Even though it is technically distilled water, the presence of minerals can kill your plant.

Learn all about the required water and watering process for Venus flytraps by reading this article I wrote based on what I have learned.

Pot

Choose an appropriate container for your Venus flytrap. Some important considerations to choose a pot are the following:

• Pot Material
• Dimensions
• Drainage

If you would like the exact venus fly trap pot recommendations I use and a guide to select the best containers, check this article.

Pot Material: The best pot materials for Venus flytraps are plastic and glazed ceramic. Also, you can employ Styrofoam containers as suitable pots. These materials are the best candidates because they provide insulation, and they do not leak components to the ground. Glass and metal containers are acceptable materials. But, they do not provide adequate insulation for extreme summer or winter temperatures. Terracotta and clay pots are very common within the gardening community. However, these materials leak components to the ground, and therefore, they are not recommended.

Pot Dimensions: Venus flytraps grow better in individual containers. For best results choose a container that matches the size of the plant. The diameter dimensions of the container range from 2-6 inches depending on the size of the plant. The depth of the container is very important too. Venus flytraps thrive in tall containers (4-6 inches).

Drainage: A pot with drainage is as important as soil with good drainage. Choose containers with a drainage hole. It is possible to grow Venus flytraps in a container without drainage holes, but it is a big challenge. Beginners should always choose pots with drainage.

These pots are some good examples of suitable containers for Venus flytraps. Follow the links below to check their specs and their current price on Amazon.

• Nursery pots for single plants: https://amzn.to/3HhvEEx
• Net pots for single plants: https://amzn.to/2TMqgDJ

The Plant

Get your plant ready for potting it. If it is currently inside a dome or a small nursery pot, remove the plant from it. Use some distilled water to loosen up the soil. Then squeeze the edges of the containers and carefully start removing the plant from its current pot.

Follow this link for a list of great shops to buy beautiful Venus fly traps: Shopping Guide.

How to Prepare the Soil for Venus Flytraps

Now that you have your plant ready to be potted, a suitable plant container, and pure water, it is time to prepare the soil. Follow these steps to get the soil ready for potting.

Choose the Soil Recipe

Gather the moss and perlite or sand. Then, decide on a suitable soil mix, like the ones described in the first section. Remember that choosing a ratio is not rocket science. So, do not over complicate it. For this example, I used peat moss and perlite. The ratio is 4 parts peat moss and 1 part perlite.

Mix the Soil and Add Water

Now that you have both ingredients. Go ahead and mix them thoroughly. Then, add water by parts. A lot of water will be absorbed by the moss right away. Be patient, and add more water until the whole medium is moist. The final product should look similar to these:

The soil for Venus flytraps should remain humid at all times. Once the ground starts drying up, it needs to be watered again. When you moisten the soil for potting your plant, make sure the medium is completely saturated with water. Your plant will prefer a very humid environment when adjusting to its new environment.

Venus Flytrap Potting Step By Step

This section will guide you step by step on how to pot a Venus flytrap:

1.- Grab your already mixed and moisten soil and place it in the pot.

2.- Use your fingers or a small shovel to set the ground in place, but do not over compress it. Also, make sure the top level of the soil is close to the edge of the pot.

3.- Employ a long and slim tool to make a deep and narrow opening in the soil, like the one below:

4.- Grab your plant from the top of the rhizome, holding all the leaves together

5.- Carefully introduce the roots of your plant inside the hole. Do your best to set the plant’s roots as vertical as possible.

6.- Push the soil surrounding the hole towards the plant. When you set the plant in the soil, make sure the ground covers the rhizome area. The rhizome is very delicate and should not be exposed to sunlight.

7.- Add more soil surrounding the plant’s bulb to secure it in place.

8.- Water the plant from the top. The water pressure will help keep the ground in place.

Now, you are all set! Your plant is ready to start growing strong. However, due to the repotting, your plant might appear weak for a few weeks. Do not get too worried, but instead follow these considerations to ensure your Venus flytrap recovers completely:

• Keep the soil moist at all times. When you water the plant, only employ distilled, reverse osmosis, or rainwater.
• Do not feed the Venus flytrap for at least two weeks. Venus flytraps benefit from consuming an occasional bug. However, in this particular scenario, do not risk losing any leaves or causing strain for the plant.
• Avoid any fertilizer.
• Expose the plant to the appropriate lighting. If your plant is used to 12 hours of light, then continue to place it in its sunny spot. If instead, you just received this plant in the mail, slowly introduce it to sunlight. Do not make an abrupt change. But, ultimately, end up exposing the plant to at least 6 hours of sunlight (or artificial light).
• Avoid unwanted stress. Do not trigger the traps or move the plant too much. Leave it alone with enough light and water.

Final Potting Tips

Through the previous sections, you learned how to choose/make carnivorous plant soil and how to pot a Venus flytrap. Here are some final tips to supplement what you learned:

• When potting a Venus flytrap, avoid triggering the traps: The interior of the lobes of each trap has three trigger hairs. Touching those sensitive filaments activates the traps. The closing traps can’t hurt humans, but they drain the plant’s energy. Not only during potting but always avoid triggering the traps to save the plant’s energy.
• Gather all materials before starting the potting process: Setting up a Venus flytrap in a new home is exciting, but is also a challenge. Make sure you have the pot, water, and soil ready before you remove the Venus flytrap from its existing container.
• Employ tools to make the process easier: Some people like using their hands to mix the dirt and handle bare-root plants, but others prefer to use tools. Consider using a small shovel to mix the soil. Also, plastic tweezers can be useful for holding the Venus flytrap.
• Do not be scared about handling the plant: Venus flytraps are resilient plants. They prefer stress-free situations but can take the human touch. There is no reason to be concerned about touching the leaves of the roots.
• Water the soil appropriately to keep it healthy: Even the best soil can get infested with fungus or bacteria if it is overwatered. The Venus flytrap requires humid soil at all times. However, the ground shouldn’t be soaking wet. After potting the Venus flytrap, practice watering the plant. Make sure the humidity level is appropriate.

For more details and tips on the potting process, read this article: Venus flytrap potting and repotting guide.

When to Change the Soil of a Venus Flytrap

Carnivorous plant soil can last for a long time in an optimal state. Still, you must repot your plant in fresh soil every so often. The general recommendation is to repot in fresh soil once a year. Repotting at the end of dormancy or during early spring provides the best results.

After a year, soil tends to get compressed, it can start to become acidic, and the drainage won’t be optional. The yearly repotting does not have to be scheduled at the exact calendar year, but it is a recommendation. I have seen videos of people showing their five year Venus flytrap that has never been repotted. In many cases, those plants are doing great. However, the old soil is not promoting the plant’s growth.

Besides the yearly repotting to freshen up the growing medium, there are some occasions when you MUST repot your Venus flytrap. Here are the specifics:

Wrong water source: Employing the wrong water source can poison your plant. When Venus flytraps are water with tap water for long periods, the leaves start turning yellow, and the soil saturates with unwanted components. Repot a Venus flytrap if it exhibits mineral burns. Mineral burns are easy to identify: the presence of yellowing leaves.

Root rot: Even though Venus flytraps require a moist environment at all times, they are prone to root rot. Excessive humidity, together with the presence of bacteria or fungus, create root rot issues. Venus flytraps die if the rot eats up the whole bulb of the root. When a plant is suffering from root rot, you must repot with fresh soil and extract the rotting section of the root. I have a whole article that covers all the details. Remember, you must act quick: How to fix Venus Flytrap root rot.

Should I Replace the Soil Due to the Presence of Algae?

You do not need to replace the soil in a Venus flytrap due to algae. Venus flytraps can live healthy in the same container with algae. The only reason why most growers repot the plants due to algae is aesthetic. It doesn’t look good when the soil starts looking green, and the water plate exhibits green coloring. From a health perspective, there will be no harmful effects.

Here is an example of some perfectly healthy Venus flytraps that have algae growing in the soil. I clean up the water plate pretty often to give it a clean look, but after a few days, it starts getting green again.

The main reason algae start growing in the soil is the high humidity index and poor drainage. The Venus flytrap above is planted in pure long-fibered sphagnum moss. The moss is excellent at retaining moisture, but it does not provide enough drainage. Since the pot is the right size for the plant, I won’t be repotting it any time soon. But, when I do, I will choose a potting medium with better drainage and aeration.

This article teaches you exactly how to eradicate all the Algae in your Venus flytrap.

Should You Add Fertilizers to Carnivorous Plant Soil?

Like I mentioned before, Venus flytraps live healthy lives without fertilizer. The general recommendation for all beginners is to skip any fertilizer. If you want to boost your Venus flytrap’s growth, focus on feeding bugs or spiders. However, it is a common misconception that all fertilizers kill Venus flytraps.

It is NOT recommended to add fertilizer to the soil. Still, you can employ foliar fertilizers. Foliar fertilizers are sprayed directly to the plant’s leaves. Then, the plant absorbs the added nutrient through the leaf tissue

Related Questions

What to Do if the Soil or the Venus Flytrap Smells?

Venus flytraps do not produce any smell and its soil should be odorless. The main causes of odor emanating from the soil are the following:

• Mold: Mold has a distinguishable smell, and it is not pleasant. Overwatering can lead to the presence of mold. The mold will only feed on dead tissue and shouldn’t harm your plant. However, the smell can be unpleasant.
• Foliage: Sometimes, odors in your plant are not coming from the plant or the soil. The foliage within the pot can emit smells, especially with carnivorous plants. Sometimes Venus flytraps capture a bug and attempt to digest it. In some cases, they digest it completely. In others, the leaf might die with the insect’s body inside. Then, the insect will stat decomposing slowly and might produce unwanted smells. To prevent odors, consider trimming your plant and removing the excessive foliage.
• Root rot: This last cause is the most problematic as root rot can kill Venus flytraps. When the rhizome of a Venus flytrap is being consumed by root rot, it emits unwanted odors. You can confirm the presence of root rot by inspecting the bulb of the plant. Mushy, dark, and stinky spots are clear signs of rotting.

Can I Use Succulent Soil for Venus Flytrap?

As a carnivorous plant grower, many people ask me questions about the Venus flytrap soil requirements. Some are curious if succulent soil is appropriate for Venus flytraps.

Venus flytraps can not be potted in succulent soil. The common ingredients for succulent soil are sand, perlite, and potting mix. The sand and perlite are common ingredients for carnivorous plant soil, but the standard potting mix is unsuitable.

Succulent soil contains minerals and fertilizers to provide nutrients to the plant. Venus fly traps won’t be able to process the nutrient present in succulent soil.

Is Cactus Soil Appropriate for Venus Flytrap?

Cactus soil and succulent soil are similar. However, each specific brand might offer a different composition. Cactus soil is unsuitable for Venus flytraps due to the plant’s intolerance to nutrients and fertilizers.

Caring for Venus flytraps and keeping them alive can be a challenge. Venus flytraps require a very specific environment to survive. But due to their popularity and fascinating nature, people grow them all over the world. In this article, I will share the care consideration for Venus flytraps all the way from beginners to advanced.

Venus flytraps require an environment with plenty of sunlight, humid soil, and nutrient-free ground. Venus flytraps thrive when they have access to feed (insects or arachnids), and they do not require fertilizers. Root rot, light-starvation, and pests are common problems with these carnivorous plants.

Venus flytrap care consideration summary:

• Light: Partial or direct sunlight for at least six hours a day
• Water type: Only water with pure water: rainwater, distilled water, or reverse osmosis water
• Watering frequency: Water frequently to keep the soil moist at all times, but not saturated
• Soil: Only employ nutrient-free soil. Pure sphagnum moss or peat moss are viable options. Here is a guide that lists the best soil options for Venus fly traps.
• Feeding: Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive, but access to feed promotes their growth.
• Pot Dimensions: Choose pots that match the size of the plant: 2 inches – 6 inches in diameter. And, always employ deep pots (7 inches)
• Pot Materials: The best-suited materials are plastic, Styrofoam, and glazed ceramic.
• Repotting: For best result, repot Venus flytraps once a year
• Trimming: Remove black leaves by cutting them from the base with scissors.
• Temperature: Venus flytraps can withstand high temperatures of up to 95 F and cold temperatures close to freezing
• Humidity: Venus flytraps can adapt to arid climates, but they benefit from high humidity environments.
• Fertilizers: There is no need to fertilize Venus flytraps.
• Dormancy: Venus flytraps go dormant during the winter for 2-3 months.
• Flowers: Flowers spur after the plant achieves maturity every spring. Skipping the flowering process by cutting the flower stalks, promotes the growth of the plant.
• Terrariums: Venus flytraps can grow in a terrarium. However, close terrariums limit their access to insects and their exposure to suitable temperatures for dormancy.

Download Venus Flytrap Care Sheet

The next sections expand on each of the topics on the list. Keep on reading to learn how to keep your Venus flytrap alive and healthy. Also, feel free to download the Venus flytrap care sheet.

Provide at least 6 hours of direct lighting

Venus flytraps require plenty of sunlight to be healthy.

Optimally, Venus flytraps should receive 12 whole hours of direct sunlight. But, they can live a healthy life with enough sunlight. The minimum recommended amount is 6 hours of indirect sunlight.

Growers can employ natural light, or they can supplement lighting by using a plant light.

Venus flytrap can be grown indoors in windowless homes as long as a plant light is available. You can employ high-output fluorescent lights or LED lights.

These are the grow lights I use to grow Venus flytraps. sundews, and pitcher plants indoors:

• Small plant light for 1-4 plants: https://amzn.to/2RsGlxr
• T8 LED light fixture for multiple plants (6500k Cool White): https://amzn.to/3uWoeh2

During the dormancy period, the light requirement for Venus flytrap lowers. However, they still need a few hours of sunlight every day. In the spring and summer, Venus flytraps need as much sunlight as you can give them. The inside of the lobes in Venus flytrap traps usually exhibits red coloring. When a plant has plenty of access to light, it exhibits bright red colors inside its traps. A lack of red coloring is, in many cases, a sign of little light exposure.

When Venus flytraps suffer from light-starvation, the leaf base grows, but the traps at the end of the petiole never develop. In this case, the traps look tiny in comparison to the rest of the leaf.

Only water with distilled water or rainwater

Tap water or bottled water contains too many minerals and nutrients to be suitable for Venus flytraps. These plants require nutrient-free mineral-free water. You can employ any source of pure water, such as:

• Rainwater
• Distilled water
• Reverse osmosis water

Make sure the water is completely pure. Some companies sell distilled water that is enhanced with minerals. Such water is unsuitable for carnivorous plants due to the added components.

When Venus flytraps are watered with the incorrect water source, they exhibit mineral burns. Some of their leaves yellow and then turn black. The yellowing of leaves is clear sign of mineral burns. To recover a Venus flytrap from exposure to the incorrect water source, the owners must repot the Venus flytrap in fresh soil and only water with pure sources.

Water often to keep the soil moist at all times

Venus flytraps thrive in humid environments. The soil Venus flytraps should always remain moist; it should never be completely dry. Water the soil from the top or passively from the bottom until the soil is moist throughout.

A good way to confirm the humidity level is on point is to perform this test:

After watering, press the soil with your fingers. You should feel the moist soil, but your fingers shouldn’t get wet. Then, adjust the watering frequency through the seasons. During the spring or summer, you might have to water your plant twice a week. But, during dormancy, the watering frequency lowers substantially.

Some people believe Venus flytraps live in swamps (which is not true), and they tend to overwater. It is difficult to overwater a Venus flytrap due to its high watering requirements; however, it can happen. When Venus flytraps are overwatered, they are prone to root rot and other fungal or bacterial infections.

Avoid standard potting mixes, employ carnivorous plant soil

Employ nutrient-free mineral-free soil. Some good options for carnivorous plant soil are a mix of moss with a draining agent—for example, sphagnum moss or peat moss and silica sand or perlite as draining agents.

Several vendors offer carnivorous plant soil mixes. These are made up of a blend of the above components. You can buy a premade blend. Or you can make your own for a fraction of the plant. Here are a few recipes:

• 4:1 or 2:1 Peat moss and perlite
• 4:1 or 2:1 Sphagnum moss and Silica Sand
• 4:1:1 Peat moss, perlite and silica sand

All of the ingredients that make up the soil MUST be nutrient-free (pure). Any Miracle Grow product is unsuitable as it contains high amounts of minerals and fertilizers. Sometimes is challenging to buy pure components in general gardening stores. However, plant nurseries tend to offer much more variety.

Planting Venus flytraps in the incorrect potting soil can kill them very quickly. Repot Venus flytraps immediately to nutrient-free soil to save the plant.

Ensure your Venus flytrap has access to insects

Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive, but access to insects promotes their growth. Venus flytraps extract key nutrients from the bugs they capture and supplement their diet.

Venus flytraps that live outdoors can capture their own prey. House plants, on the other hand, struggle to capture bugs. Then, the owners must take over the feeding process. This section will teach you the basics of how to feed a Venus flytrap:

1.- Choose The Food

Venus flytraps can consume live or dead feed. They can eat almost any type of insect or spider out there. When you feed your plant, stick to an insect and arachnid-only diet. Do not experiment with human food. The plant won’t be able to digest raw meat, candy, chicken, etc. Instead, the plant will lose a leaf, and the food will rot, attracting bacteria.

Freeze-dried insects need to be rehydrated before feeding. The process is simple. Just add a few droplets of water to the bug and it is ready.

2.- Food Size

The size of the insect is important. When feeding a Venus flytrap, make sure the insect fits completely inside the trap you are feeding. A good rule of thumb is to pick a bug that is 1/3 of the size of the trap or smaller. You can also feed venus flytraps with bug pieces. When insects are too large, the plant is unable to digest them.

3.- Feeding Frequency

Only feed one trap at a time. Choose a trap and give it an insect. Then, wait until the trap has fully digested before you feed the plant again. Since the digestion process can take several days or even weeks, it is recommended to feed Venus flytraps once every two to six weeks.

4.- When Not To Feed

• During the winter months, Venus flytraps do not need to be fed.
• When Venus flytraps are seedlings or very young plants, they are too small to be fed
• Outdoor Venus flytraps have access to plenty of feed and they do not need additional feeding
• Avoid feeding when the plant is weak due to root rot, pests, repotting, etc

Only feed Venus flytraps when you have mastered the feeding technique. Feeding them can provide great advantages, but improper procedures can end up harming the plant. You can learn all the details about the feeding process, including food options and step by step instructions in this article:

Venus Flytrap Best Food Options (a Beginners Guide With Pictures)

Pot Venus flytraps in tall pots with drainage

Chose the appropriate dimensions for a pot depending on the size of the plant. It is best to plant Venus flytraps in an individual pot. Here is a guide to pot dimensions:

• Pot diameter: 4 to 5 inches (10.5cm – 12.7 cm)
• Pot depth: 6 inches (15.24 cm)

Young Venus flytraps can grow well in narrower containers. but regardless of their size above ground, all Venus flytraps need a deep container to extend their roots. Since the roots grow vertically, tall pots are great options.

Pot Materials

Venus flytrap can grow in a wide variety of pot materials. But, the best materials are plastic, Styrofoam, and glazed ceramic. These three options provide insulation and they do not leak any compounds to the soil within the pot.

It is best to avoid any unglazed clay pots or terracotta pots. Both materials, leak minerals to the soil. Any time of additional minerals or nutrients in the ground is harmful to Venus flytraps.

Metal and glass pots are also not recommended. Both materials do not provide good insulation against extreme heat or cold. if used, Venus flytraps can freeze solid in the winter and might boil on a hot summer day.

Repot Venus Flytraps once a year at the end of dormancy

For best results, consider repotting Venus flytraps every year. Soil tends to get compressed over time and limits the plant’s growth. Also, compressed soil does not provide optimal drainage. Repotting will promote growth and prevent molding (this is how you can get rid mold) and root rot.

As a beginner carnivorous plant grower, you do not have to worry about repotting immediately. First, make sure your plant is healthy. Once, you have mastered all the other elements in your plant’s setup, you can think about repotting. Moving a plant to a new pot can cause significant stress. if the plant is already weak, there is a high risk of killing it.

When to repot? The best time to repot a Venus flytrap is at the end of dormancy. Then, after repotting, the plant will exit dormancy with fresh soil and start to flourish. Repotting during spring or summer can interfere with their reproduction and growing phase.

Besides, from the yearly repotting, you must repot a Venus flytrap in these scenarios:

• The soil medium is not appropriate
• The water used was not nutrient free
• The Venus flytrap is suffering from root rot

This article can guide you through the process of how to repot your Venus flytrap.

Trim dead black leaves seasonally

The leaves in Venus flytraps turn to a dark black color when they wither. The withering starts in the edges and takes over the whole leaves in a matter of weeks. You can trim the black leaves in a Venus flytrap without risk, just follow these instructions:

• Wait until the leaf has wholly withered before removing. Green sections of the leaf contribute to photosynthesis.
• Grab the black leaves with your hand or tweezers to isolate it. Try your best to not activate any traps within the plant
• Use a pair of scissors and cut off the leaf as close to the base as possible (without harming the bulb). Never pull a leaf, you can rip off the plant.

Trimming or pruning a Venus flytrap will give the plant more space to grow and reduce the weight of the plant. Follow the link for a guide on trimming, You can wait until the leaves naturally decompose, but that can take years. instead, consider trimming your plant every few months.

Black leaves within the plant are normal as long as a new leaf is growing. Do not get worried when you see a single black leaf. Instead, count the total number of healthy leaves. If you notice a significant decrease in healthy leaves, then, read this article to determine the cause:

Why Do Venus Flytraps Turn Black?- Reduce Black Leaves Today

Avoid temperatures below 20F and above 100F

Venus flytraps are very resilient plants. In their natural habitat, they are exposed to high temperatures in the summer (95 F) and freezing temperatures in the winter. Follow these considerations to keep your plant healthy in extreme temperatures:

Cold Winters

Venus flytraps can live through cold winters close to freezing temperatures. However, the plant must not freeze completely. If temperatures are expected to go below 30 F, consider placing your plant indoors, in a cold (but not freezing) garage or basement. Also. sometimes insulating pot materials help keep some heat within the plant.

Hot Summers

Venus flytrap can be placed outdoors under direct sunlight in the low 90s F. But, higher temperatures can dry up these plants very quickly. During extreme summers you can:

• Bring your plants indoors
• Place them under partial shade, maybe under a shade cloth
• Limit their exposure to direct sunlight

Humidity

In the wild, Venus flytraps live in mid to high humidity levels throughout the whole year. However, these plants can adapt to lower temperature indexes. If you live in an area that provides a regular 50% humidity in the environment, your Venus flytrap will have no issues adapting.

Arid climate can be a challenge for Venus flytraps. But, they can adapt. I grow Venus flytraps in Arizona, and the desert climate does not stop them. The best way to acclimate plants to lower humidity is to make a slow transition: Consider misting your plants to increase humidity and slowly reduce the misting over time.

Also, you can consider placing the Venus flytrap pot on top of a container with water. With this method, you can water your plant from the bottom, and the remaining water in the plate will increase the humidity in the area. The image below illustrates the method. You do not need a deep container, an inch of water is sufficient.

Terrariums provide high humidity, but they are not optimal for Venus flytraps.

Do not fertilize Venus flytraps

Avoid fertilizing Venus flytraps altogether. Fertilizing a Venus flytrap can kill it if done incorrectly. The excessive use of fertilizers can poison the plant with added nutrients. Most plants thrive with fertilizer, Venus flytraps are the opposite. Instead of fertilizing, Venus flytraps prefer to be fed bugs. Then, they can assimilate the nutrients.

As you get more experienced, you can experiment with fertilizers. Still, you must be very careful. Follow these rules:

• Only fertilize Venus flytraps during the spring or summer
• Do not fertilize if the plant has been fed frequently
• Employ weak foliar spray fertilizers

Ensure your Venus flytrap goes dormant in winter

In their natural habitat, Venus flytraps experience dormancy every year. Dormancy is a hibernation period when the plant rests and gets ready for the spring.

The Venus flytrap dormancy period lasts 3-4 months and it is essential for the plant’s development. Venus flytraps can survive without dormancy, but their life expectancy lowers significantly, they only live 2 – 4 years (much less than 20).

Keep your plant alive for decades by ensuring it goes dormant every winter.

Since the dormancy process is essential for Venus flytraps, owners must ensure their plant undergoes dormancy once a year.

Venus flytraps undergo dormancy when they are exposed to temperatures below 45 F for several weeks. Then, they stay dormant for 3-4 months and slowly exit dormancy, and start to flourish.

Consider placing your plant outside, in a cold garage, or on a porch to expose them to low low temperatures and start dormancy.

How to exit dormancy? In most cases, Venus flytraps will exit dormancy as the weather gets warmer. However, in locations with very long winters, Venus flytraps can struggle to exit dormancy. In those scenarios, owners can slowly introduce the plant to more lighting and warmer temperatures by placing them indoors.

What to expect during dormancy? During dormancy, Venus flytraps change significantly. The plant reduces in size and it losses most of its leaves. An increase in black leaves is completely normal during this period.

Do Venus flytraps die if they skip one dormancy? Venus flytraps do not die if they do not go dormant one year. However, skipping dormancy for several years will end up killing the plant. Dormancy is essential.

Avoid the flowering process to promote growth

The general recommendation is to skip the flowering process if you are not interested in collecting seeds. When the flower stalks start to spur from the plant, use some sharp scissors to cut them off. The flower stalks are quite different from standard leaves. They are much thicker and are cylindrical.

The faster you cut them off, the more energy your plant will save for the growing season. When Venus flytraps flowers, they produce several flower stalks. Keep an eye for all of them and remove them.

Do not grow Venus Flytrap in terrariums

Venus flytraps can grow in a terrarium. However, they do not provide optimal conditions for their growth. Terrariums provide good humidity levels, which is beneficial. But, in close terrariums, Venus flytraps do not have access to feed and they cannot receive direct sunlight. Also, due to the lack of drainage, Venus flytraps tend to suffer from root rot when placed in terrariums.

Some Venus flytraps are sold in built-in terrariums or domes. The close structure is meant to keep a high humidity level. But, these enclosed packages are not optimal for Venus flytraps. First, the dome blocks the light. Second, the plant can’t consume bugs. Third, the enclosure can overheat the plant when placed close to a light source. For best results, remove the plant from the dome and pot in a standard plant pot with drainage holes.

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Download Complete Venus Flytrap Care Sheet (Free)

Venus Flytrap Care Setup

Growing a Venus flytrap in the right setup ensures your plant will stay healthy and thrive.

I have experimented with different setups for my carnivorous plants and in this section, I will guide you to build the best possible environment for your Venus flytrap.

Venus flytraps grow well outdoors under direct sunlight for at least 6 hours a day. You must pot the plant with carnivorous plant soil and water it often to keep the soil humid at all times. Avoid fertilizers and temperatures below 20F and 90F.

Even though, growing Venus flytraps outdoors is optimal, it is also possible to grow Venus flytraps indoors.

Grow Venus flytraps indoors by either placing them in a sunny windowsill or employing artificial lighting for at least 6 hours a day. Water frequently with distilled or rainwater to keep the soil humid, but look out for overwatering signs like mold, algae, or root rot.

Overall, make sure you follow the advice in this table to build an effective setup for your plant:

Light	Provide over 6 hours of sunlight or artificial lighting
Soil	Employ carnivorous plant soil
Pot	Use plastic or glazed ceramic pots with drainage
Water	Water frequently to keep the soil humid at all times with distilled or rainwater.
Temperature	Avoid temperatures below 20F and above 100F
Location	For best results, grow Venus flytraps outdoors

The Venus flytrap is the best known carnivorous plant out there. It has been featured in countless science fiction movies, series, and books. Since its discovery, it has amazed scientists and aficionados alike. Charles Darwin even described it as the “most wonderful plant in the world.”

I have grown Venus flytraps and other carnivorous plants in my home for several years, and I always like learning more about them. Today, I have put together some very curious and unique facts about these amazing plants.

Even though most people have heard about Venus flytraps, very few actually know some facts about these fascinating plants. With this in mind, I have created a list of some curious Venus flytraps facts:

1. Venus flytraps are an endangered species
2. Venus flytrap can digest meat
3. They are native to North and South Carolina
4. Red Venus flytraps exist, and they are beautiful
5. Their most common meal is not flies
6. They are the state carnivorous plant for North Carolina
7. Venus flytrap produce white flowers
8. Venus flytraps do not consume pollinators
9. There are over 50 varieties of Venus flytrap
10. Venus flytraps choose their prey carefully
11. Prey trapped inside a Venus flytrap dies by drowning
12. Venus flytraps can make great indoor plants
13. Venus flytraps lure prey with sweet nectar and bright colors
14. Tap water kills Venus flytraps
15. Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive
16. Their trapping mechanism is extremely advanced
17. Fertilizers can kill Venus flytraps
18. Venus flytraps can reduce bug populations indoors
19. Venus flytraps are harmless to humans
20. They change colors according to their needs
21. Venus fly traps can propagate through 5 different paths
22. They open their traps in a concave or convex shape (and it has a meaning)
23. Poaching is the biggest threat for Venus flytraps

Learn more about each fact with this complete list

1- Venus flytrap can digest meat

Venus flytraps are carnivorous plants, not insectivorous plants. They can consume meat. Even though it is unusual, large plants can capture small birds, rodents, or frogs. In the wild, any animal small enough to fit inside a trap can be a potential victim. For example, mature traps surpass a length of one inch and dozens of tiny frog species can fit in that space.

The digestion process for Venus flytraps is very slow. They take several days or even weeks to digest a single bug. When this plant attempt to digest more complex organism, such as frogs, the digestion process is more challenging. The plant will have the capacity to break up the soft parts of the victim but will leave the skeleton behind.

2- Red Venus flytraps exist, and they are beautiful

Red Venus flytraps are known as Akai Ryu, which means “Red Dragon” in Japanese. This Venus flytrap variation has a unique color. The inside and outside of the leaves are maroon or purplish-red.

Akai Ryu is a Venus flytrap cultivar. Which means, this variation of Venus flytraps does not grow in the wild, humans have developed it.

“Through breeding efforts in the support greenhouses of the Atlanta Botanical Garden, a new all red form of the Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) has been created.” (Ron Gagliardo, A New Cultivar of Dionaea muscipula Ellis, Carnivorous Plant Newsletter)

3- Venus flytraps are native to North Carolina and South Carolina.

Some might imagine Venus flytraps growing in tropical jungles or savannahs. But, Venus flytraps are only native to two states in the United States: South Carolina and North Carolina. There, these plants grow with an abundance of sunlight in very humid and nutrient-free terrain. Also, Venus flytraps are resilient plants, in the Carolinas they can withstand hot summers that commonly surpass 90 F and temperatures below freezing in the winter. Besides, these plants require a temperature change through the seasons. During the winter, they experience dormancy through the cold season and they reflourish in the spring.

4- The most common meal for Venus flytraps is NOT flies

Venus flytraps eat several different types of insects and arachnids. They consume, for example, crickets, beetles, grasshoppers, spiders, slugs, ants, worms, and of course, flies. As long as the bug is small enough to fit in a trap, the Venus flytrap will most likely be able to capture it.

The popular belief that Venus flytraps are solely designed to capture flies is incorrect. Actually, in the wild, Venus flytraps not only enjoy a varied diet, but their main victims are usually ants and crawling insects.

5- Venus flytraps are an endangered species

A few years ago, the Venus flytrap was added to the endangered species list. Their original habitat has been changing due to an increase in urbanization and agricultural development. Also, the presence of poachers has reduced the plant population living in the wild. Poachers extract Venus flytraps from their habitat and sell them for profit.

If you ever encounter a Venus flytrap outdoors, do not attempt to remove it. Also, if you are planning to buy one, make sure you are buying from a responsible nursery or vendor. We must all wok together in preserving this fascinating specie of carnivorous plants.

6- North Carolina selected the Venus flytrap as its state carnivorous plant

North Carolina is the first and only state in the United States to select a state carnivorous plant. Since 2005, their state carnivorous plant is the Venus flytrap. This initiative aims to promote the conservation of the species.

Also, since 2014 poaching Venus flytraps have evolved to been considered a misdemeanor to a felony in the state of North Carolina. It is a serious crime to harm the species.

7- Venus flytraps produce flowers

Most people have heard about the Venus flytrap and are familiar with the traps. Yet, very few are aware that Venus flytraps grow flowers. The traps in Venus flytraps are not flowers, they are simply modified leaves that evolve to capture bugs.

During spring, Venus flytraps produce several flower stalks. The flower stalks grow to become flower bunches.

The flowers are white, and they have green veins running through the petals. The flowers are not very impressive. Still, Venus flytrap growers can fertilize them and harvest seeds.

8- Venus flytrap do not consume bug pollinators

Venus flytrap employs a smart mechanism to avoid consuming pollinators. Venus flytrap flowers grow over their traps. As shown in the picture below, the leaves extend only a few inches above the ground, but the flowers grow a lot higher. Venus flytraps evolved to keep prey and pollinators at two different levels.

“Of the roughly 100 different species that visited the plants, only a few were effective pollinators. These included green sweat bees, checkered beetles, and notch-tipped flower longhorn beetles, all of which were found on the plants but not in their traps.” Venus Flytraps Have Surprising Pollinators … and They Don’t Eat Them, Elaina Zachos, National Geographic

9- Over 50 Venus flytrap variations exist

Scientists and experience carnivorous plant growers have experimented with Venus flytraps for decades. At this time, they have created dozens of different variations of Venus flytraps. The Akai Ryu variation explained above is not the only one. Here are some famous Venus flytrap cultivars:

• Dionaea Green Dragon: These plants look very similar to the red Venus flytrap. but they are not completely red. The edges of the lobes exhibit a bright green color.
• Dionaea Sawtooth: This Venus flytrap exhibits short cilia in the traps. The cilia is usually compared to a saw or shark teeth.
• Dionaea Gremlin: This variation is a completely green Venus flytrap. There are no signs of red coloring inside the lobes.
• Dionaea Ginormous: This cultivar is one of the largest Venus flytrap specimens. The traps can surpass the two inches long.
• B-52 Giant Venus flytrap: Another large specimen of Venus flytrap.

This variations, do not grow in the wild, they have been produced in a controlled environment and can be sold commercially for recreational purposes. I personally own the B-52 Venus flytrap clone. In overall dimensions the plant is still not huge. But the traps are massive compared to standard Venus flytraps.

10- Venus flytraps choose their prey carefully

The process of catching and digesting prey takes significant amounts of energy from the plant. Therefore, Venus flytraps must choose victims carefully before starting the process.

First, the plant must verify it has caught live prey. Venus flytraps detect motion through trigger hairs inside their traps. If the plant can’t detect movement after it has caught prey, it will reopen. A leaf, stick, or any other inanimate object could have activated the trapping mechanism.

Also, Venus flytraps test the size of the prey they caught before they consume it. When the trap closes, it doesn’t do it in one single stage [1]. First, it goes into a semi-close stage. If the victim is a tiny insect, it will be able to scape at this moment. During the second stage, the trap will close shut and start the digestion process.

“Among carnivorous plants, the Venus flytrap is of particular interest for the rapid movement of its snap-traps and hypothesized prey selection, where small prey are allowed to escape from the traps (…) ” Understanding the Venus flytrap through mathematical modelling, Sami Lehtinen

11- The prey trapped inside a Venus flytrap dies by drowning

Venus flytraps digest their prey by secreting enzymes inside the trap. Once the plant has caught a bug in one of its traps, the trap will close hermetically. Then, special glands will produce enzymes that fill the trap and cause the victim to drown.

Digestion for Venus flytraps is a very long process. The plant takes several days or even weeks to consume a single insect.

12- Venus flytraps can make great indoor plants

You can be a Venus flytrap owner in no time! Regardless of where you live and the weather considerations, you can own a Venus flytrap, because these plants are fine indoor plants.

Venus flytraps need plenty of water, tons of light, and nutrient-free soil to live. Building a good environment to grow Venus flytraps indoors in reasonably easy. The only element that could be a challenge indoors is lighting. Venus flytraps require 4-12 hours of light a day.

It is not rare that homes or apartments lack a spot with good sunlight. Yet, there is an easy fix. You can buy a high output fluorescent plant light. Even without any windows, you can grow Venus flytraps indoors, thanks to artificial lighting.

13- Venus flytraps lure prey with sweet nectar and bright colors

Nectar secreting glands inside the traps produce sweet nectar to attract prey. Insects are attracted to the nectar and the bright red color inside the traps. Bugs get confused and believe the red interior of the trap and the nectar scents are the clear signs of a flower.

Flying and crawling mechanisms are commonly attracted by Venus flytraps. However, the plant has a better success rate with crawling insects that walk inside the trap consuming the nectar.

14- Tap water is poison for Venus flytraps

In the wild, Venus flytraps live in a nutrient-free environment. These plants have evolved to survive without substantial nutrients from water or the soil. As a result, they can’t handle nutrients in the ground or water.

Venus flytrap owners can’t water their plant with tap water. Tap water has minerals and added elements. Instead, they can use distilled water, reverse osmosis water, or rainwater. Bottled water is also unsuitable for carnivorous plants, as it contains minerals for flavor.

You can learn more information about the plant watering requirements and other care considerations by reading this article: Venus Flytrap Care Guide. The content is very useful for prospective Venus flytrap owners and novice growers.

15- Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive

One unique characteristic of plants is that they can produce their own food. They make their food through photosynthesis. And, the Venus flytrap is not an exception.

During photosynthesis, plants utilize sunlight to synthesize food from carbon and water. Venus flytraps catch bugs with their traps and digest them with enzymes, but they consume insects as a supplement to their diet (due to the lack of nutrients in their habitat).

Venus flytraps live thanks to photosynthesis. Yet, the Venus flytrap’s habitat lacks nutrients. Without crucial nutrients in the soil, their diet is not balanced. Venus flytraps consume bugs to extract elements such as Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium. These elements supplement their diet. Still, photosynthesis produces its source of fuel. Venus flytraps can survive without bugs. Yet, the plant won’t thrive without catching an occasional insect.

You can find a more in-depth explanation about the feeding requirement and effects in this article.

16- The trapping mechanism in Venus flytraps is one of the most advanced in the plant kingdom

There are several different types of carnivorous plants, such as pitcher plants, sticky leaf plants, and snap traps. The snap trap mechanism is a living proof of successful evolution.

The environment where Venus flytraps grow is very poor in nutrients. Very few plants are able to survive in that environment. The Venus flytrap was able to thrive in such a habitat thanks to becoming a successful predator. Here are a few interesting details about the mechanism:

• Double stimuli mechanism: The lobes in each trap contain trigger hairs. The trap only closes if the hairs receive stimuli twice within a short period. The dual stimuli mechanism prevents the plant from closing due to rain, dust, leaves, or any inanimate object.
• The trap can reopen: When the plant has capture prey, the leaves do not close airtight right away. First, they go into a semi-closed state. The plant needs to confirm it has caught live prey before it starts digestion.
• The traps close fast: The trapping mechanism of Venus flytraps is one of the fastest movements observed in the plant kingdom. At a resting stage, the lobes within the trap are in a convex position. After appropriate stimuli, they flip to a concave position. This method allows the plant to close its traps in a fast and decisive manner.

17- Fertilizers are gold for most plants, but they weaken Venus flytraps

Fertilizing is a must for most plants. But, Venus flytraps are a curious exception. Venus flytraps struggle synthesizing minerals and nutrients from the environment. Fertilizing a Venus flytrap can end up killing, especially if applied to a young plant or a seedling.

Expert carnivorous plant growers can experiment with weak foliar fertilizers. But amateur growers stay away from fertilizers at all time. Feeding bugs to a Venus flytrap is analogous to fertilizing. So, most people just focus on feeding the plant rather then fertilizers.

18- Venus flytraps can control the bug populations indoors

One of the big pros of owning a Venus flytrap and placing it in your home is that it can help you control the bug population. Depending on the size of the plant, Venus flytrap can consume small insects such as gnats and ant, att the way to crickets and caterpillars.

A single Venus flytrap can not help you exterminate a plague at home. But will definitely help you get rid of the occasional bug rooming around. Venus flytraps are small plants and they usually have 5-10 leaves at a time, which means it can catch five bugs at a time.

Other carnivorous plants are also as effective or even more effective in controlling the insect population. For example, carnivorous plant adhesive traps are highly effective. The butterworts and sundews are some examples of such carnivorous plants.

19- Venus flytraps are harmless to humans and they are even edible!

Venus flytraps can’t harm humans with their traps. Venus flytraps have evolved to capture insects, but not larger animals. Due to their size, the closing leaves in Venus flytraps, can’t harm humans, even if you stick your pinky in. The real truth is that a human will barely feel the pressure of a Venus flytrap closing in their fingers. In the end, Venus flytraps do not use their trapping mechanism to chew on their victims, but to entrap them.

Also, as a parent or a pet owner, you might be wondering if such an exotic plant like Venus flytrap is dangerous. Venus flytraps are not poisonous to humans or some of our beloved pets such as cats and dogs. The plant is considered to be edible and does not possess any risk to own. If a curious pet or children decides to experiment with the plant, the Venus flytrap won’t harm them.

Technically, Venus flytraps are an edible plant for humans, as they do not produce harmful toxins. Still, I am sure you can find a better source of food!

20- Venus flytrap change colors according to their needs

Traditionally Venus flytraps exhibit bright green and maroon colors in theirs leaves. But, sometimes the plants change in color due to the environment. Here are some interesting examples:

• Completely green leaves: When Venus flytraps do not receive enough light. They can lose the red color inside the lobes completely. The change to green is the plants’ mechanism to focus on photosynthesis. The main priority for Venus flytraps is always photosynthesis, then capturing bugs.
• Bright red lobes: The interior of the lobes in Venus flytrap only exhibit bright red colors, when the plant is receiving plenty of light. The reddish colors are a sign that the plant is receiving enough light for photosynthesis and now it is focusing on capturing prey.
• Black leaves: When leaves in a Venus flytrap wither, they turn to a dark black color as they dry up. The black leaves are normal within the plant, as old ones wither and new ones spur. Still, the dark color is quite unique.

21- Venus fly traps can propagate over 5 different paths

You can propagate Venus fly traps through seeds, root divisions, leaf pullings, flower stalk propagation and tissue culture. With a single plant, you can produce dozens of Venus fly trap seedlings.

Personally, my favorite method is leaf pullings. You simply remove leaves from the plant ensuring you include a piece of the root bulb. Then you burry the root area of the pulling. The leaves will eventually grow roots and produce clones of the parent plant.

22- They open their traps in a concave or convex shape

Venus fly traps keep their traps open awaiting any insects to become prey.

When a leaf is young, the trap will have a concave shape with enough space for small insects to fly or crawl in. As the leaf matures and fulfill its duty to capture insects, it will then start to decay.

As part of the leaf aging process, the trap will become convex rather than concave. In many cases, convex shaped traps stop working altogether.

The convex shaped traps are still helpful for photosynthesis but they might be able to capture insects.

23- Poaching is the biggest threat for Venus flytraps

Venus fly traps are an endangered specie. They are only native to a small part of the United States, in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest threads affecting the Venus fly trap development in the wild is poaching. People of groups remove Venus fly traps from their natural habitat and sell them.

Poaching Venus fly traps is punishable by law, still, it is a common practice unfortunately.

Avoid buying poached Venus fly traps by inspecting the soil. Smooth soil is a good sign vs diet full of debris and rocks can be a red flag. Also, look at all the available plants, are they uniform in size? uneven Venus fly traps are another red flag.

Final Thoughts

The Venus flytrap is a fascinating yet mysterious plant. I have shared with you several facts about Venus flytraps. But, still, many aspects of this plant remain a mystery. Scientists are actively studying them to understand better its trapping mechanism, evolutionary trends, and functions.

I hope you enjoyed learning about Venus flytraps! Make sure to comment below with questions or other Venus flytrap facts you would like to share with us.

Sources

• [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3115172/
• https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2018/02/venus-flytrap-pollen-eat-insects-north-carolina-bog-spd/
•  D’Amato, P. (2013). The Savage Garden. Berkeley, Unites States: Ten Speed Press.

Potting a Venus flytrap in the right container can make a huge difference. I have grown Venus flytraps in my home for several years. In this article, I will share the best potting and repotting techniques for Venus flytraps.

The best potting containers for a Venus flytrap have proper drainage and are made up of plastic, glazed ceramic, or Styrofoam. Venus flytraps prefer individual containers with a depth of at least 6 inches. It is beneficial to repot these plants every year to avoid common issues such as ground compression, root rot, or overcrowding.

This guide will take you through the process of potting or repotting your Venus flytrap. I will share some key advice to keep your plants healthy.

Here is a short summary on some important aspects:

Recommended repotting frequency	Transplant your Venus fly trap into fresh soil once a year. Avoid repotting more than once a year.
Best time to transplant	At the end of dormancy, 2-3 weeks before the temperatures start rising
What do you need to plant a Venus fly trap	Carnivorous plant soil, a pot, and pure water
What soil to use	Always use carnivorous plant soil with peat or sphagnum moss
What pot to use	Any tall plastic or glazed ceramic pot that has at least 4 inches in depth and drainage
What water to use	Use distilled, reverse osmosis, or rainwater exclusively, never use tap or bottle water

Basic Elements for Potting Venus Flytraps

First, let’s start by collecting the basic materials:

• A Pot (these pots are great for Venus flytraps: https://amzn.to/3IYVGKU)
• Carnivorous plant soil (you can make it or buy it online: https://amzn.to/3s0VZSO )
• Your Venus flytrap
• Pure water

Venus flytraps are intolerant to nutrients and minerals. Therefore, we will choose specific pots, soil, and water that is nutrient-free and mineral-free.

The water for carnivorous plants can be tricky. Venus flytrap can only be watered with pure mineral-free water, which can be any of these options:

• Distilled water
• Reverse osmosis water
• Rainwater

Make sure to buy (or collect) a jug of suitable water for your Venus flytrap before you get started. You will need it during the potting process and right after too.

If you already have all the materials, feel free to skip to the later sections.

Venus Flytrap Potting Container

Follow this considerations when selecting a container for your Venus fly trap:

Suitable materials	Glazed ceramic, plastic, glass, styrofoam
Unsuitable materials	Concrete, unglazed ceramic, clay, terra cotta, metal
Diameter	3-6 inches for single plants, 6+ inches for multiple
Depth	4 inches is the minimum recommended depth
Drainage	Must contain drainage holes
Color	Avoid black pots in extremely hot locations
Airflow	Avoid closed containers, such as terrariums and domes, at all costs

Material

You can employ a variety of different pot containers for your Venus flytrap. Here are some common choices:

• Plastic
• Styrofoam
• Glazed ceramic
• Metal
• Glass

The best pot materials for Venus flytraps are plastic, styrofoam, or glazed ceramic pots. These materials provide insulation from the environment, which helps you avoid exposing your plant to extreme heat or cold. Also, they do not leak any type of minerals to the soil. It is not common to find styrofoam plant pots, but some people repurpose styrofoam cups as pots for small plants. They are an inexpensive option and they provide the best insulation.

Metal and glass pots are acceptable containers. They do not leak any type of element to the soil, but insulation can be a challenge. Make sure to avoid extreme temperatures if using metal or glass pots.

Terracotta and unglazed ceramic or clay pots are not suited materials for Venus flytraps. These materials tend to leak minerals to the ground which can harm Venus flytraps. It is possible to use them, but the recommendation is to employ older pots that release less or no minerals due to the previous usage.

If you would like the exact Venus fly trap pot recommendations I use and a guide to select the best containers, check this article.

Drainage

Venus flytraps require a moist environment to live. They need to be watered very often and as a result grow better in pots with drainage.

Make sure the pot has at least one drainage hole or consider adding one of necessary.

The plastic net pot in the images below is a useful option for Venus flytraps. It works best when employing sphagnum moss as the potting media. The net pot can be placed on a shallow water container to provide enough humidity and water the plant from the bottom.

It is possible to grow Venus flytrap is a container without drainage, like a terrarium for example, but it is challenging to do so. As a beginner carnivorous plant grower, I wouldn’t suggest experimenting with terrariums just yet.

Pot Size

Choose a pot that matches the size of the Venus flytrap. The plant can restrict its growth due to a very small container and overly large pots are also not recommended. An adult Venus flytrap growth best in the following dimensions:

• Pot diameter: 4 to 5 inches (10.5cm – 12.7 cm)
• Optimal pot depth: 6 inches (15.24 cm)

Young Venus flytraps that are only 1 to 2 years old can live in 2 to 3 inches in diameter. The depth of the pot, however, should be more than 4 inches.

Potting Soil

Now, let’s select an appropriate potting medium. Venus flytraps can’t grow in standard compost or soil, due to the richness in nutrients. Instead, employ a mixture of these elements:

• Long fibered sphagnum moss
• Peat moss
• Perlite
• Silica sand

To make Venus flytrap soil combines one type of moss with a draining agent (sand or perlite). For example, you can employ a 2:1 ratio of peat moss and perlite. Or a 2:1 ratio of long-fibered sphagnum moss with sand. The ratio depends on personal preference, but a 2:1 or 4:1 ratio are common choices.

It is acceptable to employ pure peat or sphagnum moss as the ground for Venus flytrap. However, it is encourage to add sand or perlite to provide better drainage and aeration.

Important Consideration: When you buy any of the materials above, make sure they are pure. Some suppliers (like miracle grow) offer enriched peat moss instead of pure peat moss. Any enriched version will bring too many nutrients to your plant.

Where to buy Venus flytrap soil?

Sometimes it is difficult to buy pure moss in standard gardening stores or nurseries. As an option, you can buy carnivorous plant soil online. It usually contains exactly the same elements I outlined in this section, but they go through the trouble of mixing it and ensuring the lack of nutrients. Search for carnivorous plant soil in Amazon or Etsy to find some good options.

How to Pot a Venus Flytrap

Follow the steps from the video or the instruction list below to pot a Venus flytrap:

1. Collect the appropriate water, soil, and pot we discussed in the previous sections.
2. Place the soil in a container and moisten it with the water until it is almost saturated.
3. Place the soil inside the selected plant pot.
4. Make a vertical hole in the center of the ground. Try to make a hole that is at least 3 inches in depth.
5. Carefully grab the Venus flytrap from the top of the bulb. The image below shows some bare-root Venus flytrap I ordered online. The bulb is the white area of the root. The black roots are strong, but the bulb can be quite delicate, do not picture it or press it too hard.
6. Introduce the roots of the plant in the hole
7. Make sure the center of the bulb will be underground. The bulb is very sensitive to light and extreme temperatures. It should always remain underground.
8. Use your finger to push the soil together and tighten the plant.
9. Water the plant slightly to make sure the soil is moist, but not swamped. You can use a misting bottle to avoid moving the ground.
10. If the plant was shipped to you, it has been in a dark box for a few days. Slowly introduce it to some sunlight. Start with a few hours of light and progress into an optimal amount of 12 hours.
11. In the next weeks, avoid additional stress to your plant. Do not feed it, do not fertilize it, and do not play with the traps. It takes the plant a few weeks to settle in the new environment.
12. You did it! Now, follow all the Venus flytrap care considerations to keep the plant healthy. Here is a complete guide on Venus flytrap care Instructions.

When to Repot a Venus Flytrap

Consider repotting your Venus flytrap once a year to avoid soil compression and promote growth in the brand new soil. Still, do not take this advice as a strict rule. Overall, never attempt to repot a Venus flytrap when it is sick or weak.

Some specific conditions might force you to repot a Venus flytrap. Like for example these:

• You have noticed black spots in the bulb of your plant, which is a clear sign of root rot. Root rot expands through the roots and eventually kills the plant. In this case, repotting is mandatory. Also, it is necessary to extract the rotting portion of the root.
• You have used the improper water type, such as tap water or bottled water. Unfortunately, once you used the wrong water source, the soil will hold the extra minerals for several weeks. During that timeframe, the Venus flytrap will lose leaves due to mineral-burn and can die.
• The soil has nutrients, and it is killing your plant. It is impossible to keep a Venus flytrap in standard plant-soil without killing it. It is crucial to change the potting medium immediately.
• Fungus or mold are growing in the potting media

Pro Tip: An optimal time for repotting is at the end of dormancy. Venus flytraps undergo dormancy during the winter. And it lasts 2-3 months. Consider repotting your plant during the last month of dormancy. Then, the plant will exit dormancy and start to flourish in brand new soil.

How to Repot a Venus Flytrap

Follow these steps to repot a Venus flytrap:

1. Gather fresh soil and water
2. Take your plant (still in the pot) and water the soil lightly to loosen it up
3. Carefully break up the soil on the edges of the pot until it is no longer attached.
4. Remove the Venus flytrap from the pot. When the plant is out of the container, you will be able to see the roots with soil attached to them.
5. Patiently remove the soil within the roots and the bulb. You can employ more water if you find it easier to remove moist soil. The roots are delicate, but they can withstand the human touch.
6. Once all the soil is removed, examine the plant, especially the roots. Sometimes a single Venus flytrap divides into multiple plants. In that case, separate the plants and place them in independent containers. Most Venus flytraps only produce 6 to 10 leaves at a time, a plant with more than 10 traps has likely propagated.
7. Use small scissors to trim any dead foliage. When potted, it is difficult to prune Venus flytraps without activating the traps or harming other leaves. Take advantage of this opportunity to prune your plant.
8. Place the new soil in a mixing container.
9. Combine the soil with some water until the soil is humid.
10. Place the humid soil in the same pot or a new one. If using the same container, rinse the pot thoroughly.
11. Make a deep vertical hole in the center of the ground.
12. Grab the Venus flytrap from the top of the bulb and carefully introduce it in the aperture. Try your best to place the roots in a vertical orientation. Also, make sure the bulb is underground.
13. Push the soil surrounding your plant together and tighten the plant in the ground.
14. Add some extra water to the plant and make sure the soil is moist, but not soaking wet. Pour water slowly or use a bottled mister to prevent shifting the soil.
15. In the next weeks, please treat the plant with extra care. It takes the plant a few weeks to adapt to a new environment.
16. Finally, continue to follow all the care considerations for Venus flytraps.

What to Expect After Potting and Repotting Venus Flytraps

All plants take some time to adapt to a completely new environment. During the following weeks after potting or repotting a Venus flytrap focus on providing good care. Here are a few key considerations to implement:

• Provide enough water to keep the soil humid at all times.
• Set the plant in a strategic location with enough exposure to sunlight.
• Avoid activating any of the traps. Closing and opening the traps for no reason, waists a significant amount of the plant’s energy
• Skip a few feeding and wait until your plant has fully recovered before feeding.
• Do not fertilize the plant. Generally, fertilizing carnivorous plants is an advanced procedure, it must be done carefully and at the right time.

Even though a Venus flytrap weakens during repotting, it will only be down for a few days or a couple of weeks. But, setting it is fresh soil will bring many benefits, like the following:

Promote growth: When soil is set in a pot for months or years, it compresses, especially if watered from the top. The roots in Venus flytraps struggle to break up the ground and the plant’s growth slows down.

Avoid root rot: Older soil, not only compresses but starts holding more liquid. The increased humidity can ultimately cause root rot. Venus flytraps thrive in moist environments, but they do not benefit from standing water. Without proper drainage, the water stays within the ground for too long and poses the risk of rotting.

Separate multiple plants: Venus flytraps employ multiple methods to reproduce. For example, they produce flowers during the spring, which when pollinated create seeds. Also, Venus flytraps create root bulbs for reproduction. When the conditions are adequate, a Venus flytrap starts dividing and creating more plants. It is not mandatory to separate those plants. But, growing independently gives them more room for growth and development.

Summary: Potting and Repotting Tips

I hope this guide has provided enough insight and detailed instructions to guide you through the potting and repotting process of Venus flytraps. Venus flytraps are beautiful and fascinating plants. But, they do have some strict growing requirements. Just in case you missed one of the highlights, here is a summary of the main takeaways from this article:

• Employ plastic, styrofoam or glazed ceramic pots
• Pots with drainage holes are the best option
• Do not employ standard soil. Venus flytraps can only live in a nutrient-free medium.
• Have distilled, reverse osmosis or rainwater for potting. And always water Venus flytraps exclusively with these types of water.
• Only repot a Venus flytrap when it is healthy. The strain from repotting can kill a weak Venus flytrap.
• Repot the plant immediately if it is at risk of dying due to root rot, improper soil, or water source.
• The best time to repot a Venus flytrap is at the end of dormancy. Follow the link to learn more about the dormant period.
• Avoid triggering the traps while handling a Venus flytrap

Feeding a Venus flytrap is a unique and fun experience. Venus flytrap benefits from capturing prey and consuming bugs. In this article, I would like to share what I have learned about feeding Venus flytraps, including food options and the feeding method.

Venus flytraps capture and consume insects and arachnids to extract critical nutrients and supplement their diet. Venus flytraps can consume a variety of arthropods, such as flies, crickets, spiders, worms, ants, beetles, and slugs.

Now, let’s choose which food option is the most viable for you and continue with an overview of the feeding process. Feeding Venus flytraps is not very hard, but improper procedures can harm your plant. The instructions below will guide you through the process.

Venus Fly trap Feeding Fact Summary

Suitable food options	Live or dead bugs, such as spiders, worms, flies, bloodworms, mealworms, crickets, beetles, gnats, ants
Harmful food options	Human food: meat, chicken, sausage, fruit, candy, etc
Feeding requirement	Feeding is not a requirement for survival, but can offer some benefits.
Feeding frequency	Feed 1-2 times a month for indoor plants and 0 for outdoor plants as they capture their own food
Food size	Select bugs that are no larger than 1/3 of the size of the trap you intend to feed
Food livelihood	Bugs can be dead or alive for feeding, however, the process will vary depending on their state

Venus Flytrap Food Options

Venus flytraps are native to the wetlands of South Carolina and North Carolina in the United States. There, they grow in inferior soil, with no access to nutrients. Over the years, Venus flytraps have evolved to be successful predatory plants.

Venus fly traps consume bugs to extract key nutrients and supplement their diet. However, feeding them is not a requirement; It is just a supplement. You can choose to never feef your plant or just grow it outdoors where it can capture its own food.

In terms of food options, you must pick an appropriate meal in terms of size and decide if you prefer to employ live or dead feed.

Venus flytraps are not picky eaters. They can consume almost any type of insect or spider that is dead or alive and fits inside their traps.

Venus flytrap can only consume bugs that fit inside their traps. Usually, a bug that is about 1/3 of the size of the trap should fit completely in it. Depending on the size of your venus flytrap you can consider the options below. You must also decide between live and dead feed.

Store Bought Options

• Freeze-dried Mealworms (link to buy on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3P5vNiE)
• Freeze-dried Bloodworms (link to buy on Amazon: https://amzn.to/45TXtgn)
• Dried crickets
• Live crickets
• Live fruit flies
• Live worms

You do not have to capture bugs for your Venus flytrap. It is very easy and inexpensive to buy feed in pet stores. The items in the store-bought list are very common items in pet shops as they are used to feed reptiles and fish.

The first three options: dried crickets, freeze-dried mealworms, and bloodworms, are all dead feed. They have been dried up and dehydrated. Before feeding to a Venus flytrap, you must use water to rehydrate the bugs. The convenient thing about these three options is the price and durability. A single package with thousands of worms or crickets costs only 5 to 10 dollars. And it can be stored for several years. Besides, the three options are highly nutritious. You might think dead bugs might provide fewer nutrients, but that is not necessarily true. For example, the mealworms in the picture are made up of about 45% protein.

I buy these freeze-dried bugs in the pet store as they are very affordable, can last you for years, and are extremely nutritious. The link will take you to Amazon to review the prize, they are usually less than $10.

Pet stores also offer live feed options, as some pets won’t eat dead bugs. Consider buying live crickets, fruit flies, or worms to feed your Venus flytrap. They cost about 5 to 12 dollars. Keep in mind live bugs have a limited life expectancy. So, you must buy them when you are ready to feed your plant.

Other Food Options

• Flies
• Ants
• Gnats
• Caterpillars
• Spiders
• Beetles
• Slugs
• Grasshoppers
• Worms
• Crickets

Against popular belief, Venus flytraps not only consume flies, but also other types of insects. You can experiment with different types of feed with your plant. Any of these options will provide good nutritional values. Some bugs are more difficult to use as carnivorous plant food than others. Here are a few considerations:

Ants and Gnats: They are great candidates for young Venus flytrap due to their size. But, feeding ants or gnats to large Venus flytrap can be a challenge. Sometimes these bugs are too small to activate the traps or they might escape before the lobes are fully close.

Slugs and Caterpillars: Be aware that these insects can give a ferocious fight to escape. Slugs and caterpillars can attempt to eat their way out of the plant.

Crickets and Grasshoppers: These two bugs are difficult to handle when they are alive. Make sure to practice picking them up with a set of tweezers or with your hands.

Dead vs Live Feed

Venus flytraps can consume either dead or live feed. This article I wrote contains a full list of venus flytrap food options. There are no extra nutritional or health benefits to choosing one on top of the other. However, the feeding process varies, and the decision should be based solely on your preferences.

• Personality: Some people enjoy handling live bugs and are excited about feeding them to carnivorous plants. Others are not so interested in live prey.
• Convenience: You can buy dead feed and store them for a few years without having to worry about buying more food for your plant. Buying and storing live food is more expensive and time-consuming.
• Extra skill: Employing live feed takes some skill. You need to be comfortable handling moving insects. And master the technique to avoid losing the bug.
• An extra step in the feeding process: In nature, Venus flytraps only consume live food. When you feed them dead bugs, you will need to follow one extra step to ensure your plant does not lose interest in the dead prey.

The Best Food Options

I have experimented with different types of feed for several years. Some tend to be a lot more effective than others. Here is my recommendation for Venus fly traps:

Live or dried-up mealworms or crickets are some of the best options for Venus fly traps, as they provide an extensive nutritional value, they are easy to digest, and readily available in most pet stores.

Dried up versions provide very similar benefits to live ones, however, the process of feeding dead bugs produces more stress to the plant. Overall, I prefer to go for live bugs when they are available.

The Worst Food Options (Avoid at all costs!)

The vast majority of insects and spiders will work great for Venus fly traps, with very few exceptions like a snail which tends to be difficult to digest. However, there are some food options which you should always avoid.

Never feed human food to Venus fly traps, avoid chicken, meat, candy, or fruits. Venus fly traps are unable to digest human food. Employing it will cause the leaf to die and the food to rot over time attracting possible pests.

Venus Flytrap Feeding Basics

This section will help you master the feeding process with live and dead food. First of all, let’s start by learning some basic tips:

• Outdoor Venus flytraps do not need to be fed: In the outdoors, Venus flytraps capture their own food. They do not need human help to capture bugs.
• The bug size matters: Never focus on feeding large bugs to Venus flytrap. Instead, follow this rule: only feed your plant bugs that fit entirely inside the trap. If the insect is too big, the plant won’t be able to digest it. In terms of nutritional value, even small bugs can provide enough nutrients for a mature plant.
• Only feed one trap at a time: Just a single bug is enough for the whole plant. Select a trap and feed just that trap. You can alternate between feedings, but never attempt to feed multiple traps at a time.
• Avoid overfeeding: Overfeeding a Venus flytrap can be harmful to the plant. The plant can start losing leaves if it gets overwhelmed with all the food. Only feed Venus flytrap once every 2 to 6 weeks. The digestion process can take up to two weeks, so make sure the plant has finished the previous meal before you introduce a new one.
• No need to feed dormant plants: In the winter, Venus flytrap experience dormancy, which is similar to hibernation. During this process, there is no need to feed them.
• Stick to an exclusive bug diet: The previous section contains plenty of food options for Venus flytrap. Stick to those alternatives and other insects or spiders. Do not experiment with human food. Venus flytrap can digest candy, chicken, fruit, hamburgers, or any human food.
• Watch the leaves after feeding: After you feed a leaf, observe it for the next weeks. The plant will at least a week to digest the bug. If the leaf starts dying, in the middle of the digestion process, you might have chosen an excessively large bug.

Venus Flytrap Feeding Procedure

In this section, you will learn how to feed a Venus flytrap. The feeding procedures vary slightly between the dead and live feed options.

Feeding Dead Bugs

Step 1: Prepare the bug

Dead bugs from the pet store usually are dehydrated. Before you feed one to a Venus flytrap, you must rehydrate the bug. Use a few droplets of distilled water to hydrate it. If you are using a dead bug you caught or found, there is no need to hydrate it.

You might consider breaking up the insect into smaller pieces for easier handling. I like to break up mealworms into smaller pieces and hydrate them with water. Then, it is much easier to pick the appropriate amount for a single trap. The image below shows whole dried-freeze mealworms, and slightly broken up and rehydrated worms.

Step 2: Choose the appropriate amount

Now, you must pick the appropriate amount of food to feed a Venus flytrap. A good rule of thumb for bugs is to choose an insect that is no bigger than 1/3 of the size of the trap. When you feed a dead bug, especially if it comes from the pet store, it is better to aim for a smaller amount. Aim for some quantity close to 1/4 of the size of the trap.

Generally, it is much easier to fit larger traps. When you feed very young Venus flytraps, it is a challenge to choose a small enough portion. In that case, it is a good idea to consider breaking up the bug into tiny bits.

Step 3: Place the food inside the trap

After you select the appropriate quantity, pick it up with your hands, or with a tool. I like to use a set of chopsticks.

Place the feed inside the trap. Aim for the center and make sure, the whole meal fits inside the trap. Remember, it is better to choose a smaller meal!

Step 4: Trigger the closing mechanism of the leaves

Sometimes you place the bug inside the trap, and it immediately triggers the closing mechanism of the lobes. On other occasions, you might need to manually trigger the trapping mechanism. Use a small stick like a q-tip of chopsticks and gently touch the trigger hairs inside the trap. You need to touch them twice within a few seconds for the trap to close.

Step 5: Stimulate the plant

After activating the trigger hairs, the trap will close. But, it will not do so immediately. First, it will go into a semi-closed state. This is completely normal. At this point, the plant is evaluating if it caught a live prey. Since it obviously didn’t, we must trick the plant to start the digestion process.

Use your finger or some small tool to massage the sides of the trap. Tap both sides of the trap for a minute or two, until it has completely closed. Once, it is closed shut, continue tapping the sides of the trap 10 to 20 more times to secure the digestion process has started.

These pictures show the initial semi-closed stage and the completely closed stage. In the second picture, the Venus flytrap has started digesting the prey.

Step 6: Wait and verify the plant started digesting the food

Now, you are all done. Keep an eye on the trap during the next hours. It should remain close for several days or even weeks while it digests the prey. If the leaf starts turning black, it is very likely that the feed was too large for the trap. Next time, choose a smaller portion for your plant.

Feeding Live Bugs

Step 1: Select the right size of bug

Do not attempt to overfeed a Venus flytrap. Carefully select a bug that can fit completely in between the two lobes. Follow the 1/3 of the size of the trap sizing rule. If your plant is too small to handle the victim. It is better to skip feeding.

Step 1: Prepare the bug

Live bugs, do not need any extra prep before you feed them to a Venus flytrap. However, here are a few suggestions for handling the insect:

• Use a small tool you feel comfortable with to secure the bug. Tweezers are usually a good option to set a live bug in place.
• Consider placing the bugs in the freezer for a few minutes. The cold will stun them and confuse them.
• Avoid choosing live insects that can fly away. Those are a real challenge

Step 2: Hold the bug and place it inside the trap

1. Use a small tool or your hands to pick up the bug.
2. Carefully set it in the center of the trap.
3. Make sure you touch the trigger hairs inside the Venus flytrap lobes when you place the bug.
4. The leaf should close and keep the bug in place. However, it will only go into a semi-closed stage.
5. The movement of the victim trying to scape will continue to stimulate the trigger hairs inside the trap.

You do not need to stimulate the traps or do anything else. The movement of the bug will ensure the trap closes completely. Once that happens, the plant will drown the insect with enzymes and starts digesting it.

Step 3: Wait and verify the trap is fully closed

Keep an eye on the plant for a few minutes. Some bugs can try to escape from the plant by eating their way out or using brute force. Then, monitor the trap in the next weeks to ensure the feeding was successful.

At the end of the process, the leaf will reopen and expose the exoskeleton and any other remains of the victim.

Related Questions

Why Do Venus Flytrap Consume Bugs?

Venus flytrap capture bugs to supplement their diet. In their natural habitat, Venus flytraps live in very poor soil which lacks nutrients. Some scientists hypothesize Venus flytraps chose such an environment because of the lack of competition for the soil.

Still, the Venus flytrap needed access to key nutrients such as Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, which were not present in the environment. As a result, Venus flytraps evolved to be successful predators. The traps in a Venus flytrap are modified leaves that have developed a trapping mechanism. When a Venus flytrap captures an insect, it closes and starts producing digestive enzymes inside the trap. The plant digests the bugs and extracts key nutrients to supplement their diet.

Do Venus Flytraps Need Bugs to Survive?

Venus flytraps consume bugs, but do they need them to survive?

Venus flytraps do not need bugs to survive. Like the other plants, Venus flytraps produce their own food through the photosynthesis process. For that reason, Venus flytraps require great amounts of sunlight and water to survive.

Even though the bugs are not required for the plant’s survival, they benefit from capturing prey. The nutrients they extract from their victims supplement their diet and boost their growth, especially when the plant is young.

Why Won’t a Venus Flytrap Eat?

Venus flytraps can start consuming bugs from a very young age. As soon as they are large enough to capture prey, they will start consuming them. In rare scenarios, Venus flytraps do not consume prey. This is not common in the wild, but it can be in other environments.

Here are a few reasons why a Venus flytrap is not consuming insects:

1. Improper care: if the Venus flytrap is sick, suffering from a pest infestation of not receiving nearly enough light, the traps might not work properly. The plant is focused on surviving, rather than capturing prey.
2. Dormancy: During dormancy, Venus flytraps go into a resting stage. During that period, Venus flytraps do not need to consume prey. They are just focused on resting rather than growing.
3. Dying leaves: venus flytraps are constantly changing old leaves for new ones. A trap might not close because it has started withering. You might notice some black coloring on the edges that will expand through the whole branch. A dying leaf is not useful for capturing and consuming bugs. However, it will still participate in the photosynthesis process.

Should you worry about black leaves in your Venus flytrap? Black leaves appear fairly often, sometimes they are normal and sometimes they are a sign of poor growing conditions.

Leaves in Venus flytraps continuously grow and wither as part of their growth cycle. However, when several traps in a Venus flytrap turn black, it can be a warning sign. An increasing number of dead leaves can be due to improper feeding, poor lighting, stress, or improper watering.

Here are the most common causes for leaves turning black in your Venus flytrap:

• Dormancy
• Natural life cycle
• Insufficient lighting
• Inappropriate feeding
• Wrong soil
• The use of tap water or bottled water
• Poor watering habits
• Unwanted stress
• Extreme temperatures
• Lack of humidity
• Use of fertilizers

In this article, I have made a list of all the most common causes of black leaves in Venus flytrap and I have included simple solutions to resolve them. Read it thoroughly to determine if the dead leaves in your plant are normal or if you should take action and modify your plant’s setup.

Possible Causes of Black Leaves

The leaves in Venus flytraps do not last forever. They sometimes wither. When they do, the leaves turn to a dark black color and dry out. The withering process can take several days or even weeks.

The leaves in a Venus flytrap turn black due to natural causes or due to improper care. Healthy Venus flytraps exhibit bright colors. The exterior of the traps is bright green, and the interior is bright burgundy. However, it is normal to observe black leaves within a healthy plant.

Read below to determine the cause of the status of your plant.

Do not be discouraged if you have made a mistake when caring for your Venus flytrap. We all have! Just be proactive and fix the problem right away. This article also helps you fix common care mistakes.

Venus Flytrap Turning Black Due to Natural Causes

Sometimes, Venus Flytraps turn black under entirely normal conditions. If you have not made any of the care mistakes we explain in the next section, then you might have nothing to worry about.

Leaf Cycle

Venus flytrap’s leaves open and close a limited amount of times before they wither. This process is entirely normal. Each trap might be slightly different, but they can open and close somewhere between five to ten times before they die. When the leaf starts turning black, a new trap should be spurring out.

All the traps in your plant will undergo this process. Do not get stressed about every single black leaf.

Usually, Venus flytraps grow 3 to 8 leaves at a time. I recommend monitoring the overall number of healthy leaves in your plant. It is normal to lose one leaf. But, if you notice several leaves are dying and the plant is not producing enough new ones, there might be a problem.

Dormancy

Venus flytraps undergo a dormancy process every year. In the winter, when temperatures drop, Venus flytraps will go dormant. During dormancy, black leaves are completely normal.

Depending on the time of the year, your plant might be experiencing dormancy. Venus flytraps start dormancy after been exposed to temperatures between 45 F (8 C) and freezing (32 F / 0 C) [1] for two to four weeks.

If you are uncertain if your plant is dormant or dead, the best you can do is wait until the weather warms up and your plant gets out of dormancy (hopefully). Dead Venus flytraps have a mushy texture and might smell. Dormant Venus flytraps on the other hand exhibit several black leaves, but they are not mushy and they shouldn’t smell.

Black Leaves in a Venus Flytrap Due to Care Mistakes

Black leaves can be a warning sign of improper care for Venus flytrap. Review the following items to confirm the black leaves in your Venus flytrap are due to natural causes.

Improper Feeding

It is exciting to feed a Venus flytrap. The feeding process is mutually beneficial for you and for your plant. Venus flytraps get extra nutrients, and humans become amazed by how the trapping mechanism works. However, some Venus flytrap owners get too excited about the feeding and mistakenly start killing the traps.

Improper Food: You can feed your plant with live bugs or dead bugs. Venus flytraps consume a wide variety of insects and arachnids. However, you should abstain from feeding your plant with any human food, such as burgers, raw meat, candy, and fruit.

Venus flytraps have evolved to consume bugs, but they are not able to digest human food. The plant will attempt to digest the human food you give it, but it will be unsuccessful. The Venus flytrap will spend lots of energy trying to digest that food but will give up eventually. When the plant gives up, it lets the trap wither.

Prey Size Mistake: Sometimes, the feed is too big for a Venus flytrap to consume. If the prey is too big, the trap won’t be able to digest it in an acceptable timeframe. Then, the plant will let the trap turn black and wither.

Do not feed your plant with large prey. A good rule of thumb is only to use insects that are 1/3 of the size of the trap. If you can’t find a small enough bug, feed bug pieces to you Venus flytrap.

The insects you feed your plant are just a supplement to boost their diet. You do not need to feed them giant bugs for them to live. Bugs are highly nutritious, and a single ant, for example, can provide enough nutrients for the month.

Feeding Frequency: Only feed one trap at a time and wait the appropriate amount of time between feedings. Feeding a single trap is enough for the whole plant. Once you have fed one of the traps, you can wait several weeks before the next feeding. A reasonable timeframe is to feed your plant once every 2-6 weeks. If you are in doubt if your plant is receiving too much feed, then wait until it has digested all previous bugs before the next meal. Also, during dormancy, avoid feeding your plant at all.

Not feeding your plant will also weaken it. Even though underfeeding won’t kill your plants and will most likely not cause any leaf loss, I recommend feeding your plant when necessary. When placed outdoors, Venus flytraps will feed themselves by catching prey. When placed indoors, your Venus flytrap will need your help! In that case, follow the previous instructions regarding prey size and feeding frequency.

Poor Lighting

Venus flytraps require lots of sunlight to thrive. In optimal conditions, they should receive 12 hours of sun a day. If your plant is receiving less than 4 hours of sunlight, it can be a big problem. Venus flytraps won’t die immediately when they suffer from light starvation, but they will weaken substantially.

When poor lighting occurs, the color of the traps sometimes fades. Also, you might notice some black edges in the leaves.

You can supplement the light requirement with artificial lighting. There is a wide variety of plant light options in the market. High Output fluorescent lights are suitable for Venus flytraps. Also, you can employ high power LED plant lights.

These are the grow lights I use to grow Venus flytraps. sundews, and pitcher plants indoors:

• Small plant light for 1-4 plants: https://amzn.to/2RsGlxr
• T8 LED light fixture for multiple plants (6500k Cool White): https://amzn.to/3uWoeh2

Wrong Water Source or Quantity

Venus flytraps require a lot of watering. The soil needs to be moist at all times. Also, you can’t water your plant with tap water or bottled water. Instead, use rainwater, reverse osmosis, or distilled water.

Using the wrong water or not watering enough will dry out the leaves. These mistakes can turn traps black and kill your plant very quickly.

If you used the incorrect water, repot immediately. Use new soil and make sure to use the correct type of water from now on. The minerals contained in standard tap water burn the roots of Venus flytraps.

Since Venus flytraps require a moist environment, I recommend using a saucer or plate to hold extra water. Like the image above, you can place the plant pot (with a drainage hole) in a shallow container filled with water. With this method, you always have a water reserve.

Wrong Soil

Improper soil can kill your plants very fast too. It might be counter-intuitive when you compare it with any other plants, but Venus flytrap needs nutrient-free soil. In the wild, they live in very poor soil. Therefore, they can’t handle any added nutrients or minerals.

Do not use standard soil; Venus flytraps can’t handle the nutrients. The plant will weaken and eventually die with the improper ground.

Employ carnivorous plant soil for Venus flytraps. Most growers use a combination of a type of moss, like Long-fibered sphagnum moss or sphagnum peat moss with a draining agent such as sand or perlite. The goal is to use a soil that does not contain any added elements.

If you have potted your Venus flytrap in the ground type of ground, remove it immediately. Employ the appropriate soil and water only with distilled water, reverse osmosis water or rain water.

Unwanted Stress

This Venus flytrap care consideration is often forgotten. Sometimes leaves turn black due to stress. The stress can be caused by people or by the environment.

Place your plant in a tranquil area without constant movement. Avoid spots where there is a flowing curtain or a strong fan. Motion can produce strain and ultimately cause your plant to lose leaves.

Also, do not touch your plant if it is not necessary. Avoid playing around with the traps and handling too much. Humans can also cause stress to the plant.

Use of Fertilizers

Excessive fertilizers can produce black leaves in most plants due to excessive salts in the ground. Venus flytraps have a low tolerance for fertilizers. Any type of fertilizing can make them lose leaves.

As a beginner carnivorous plant grower, it is best to avoid fertilizing Venus flytrap completely. Instead, you can feed your plant to provide additional nutrients. As an experienced grower, you can fertilize your plant by following these basic rules:

• Venus flytraps only need fertilizing during the growing season
• Avoid fertilizing if the plant has plenty of access to feed
• Fertilize Venus flytrap plants with weak foliar sprays

Extreme Temperatures

Venus flytraps are very resilient plants. However, extreme temperatures can make your plant lose leaves.

Cold Winters

Venus flytraps can live through cold winters close to freezing temperatures. However, the plant must not freeze completely. Avoid temperatures below 20 F.

Hot Summers

Temperatures over 100F can dry up Venus flytraps plants very quickly and cause leaves to turn black. During extreme summers you can:

• Bring your plants indoors
• Place them under partial shade, maybe under a shade cloth
• Limit their exposure to direct sunlight

Lack of humidity

In the wild, Venus flytraps live in mid to high humidity levels throughout the whole year. However, these plants can adapt to lower temperature indexes. If you live in an area that provides a regular 50% humidity in the environment, your Venus flytrap will have no issues adapting.

In arid climates, the lack of humidity can cause black leaves. Consider misting your plants to increase humidity and slowly reduce the misting over time.

Should You Cut Off Black Leaves in a Venus Flytrap?

You can certainly remove black leaves from your Venus flytrap. The black color from one leaf won’t expand into the next. But, dead leaves cause strain to the plant in the long term.

When to Cut the Black Leaves?

Venus flytraps, like other plants, can generate their food through the photosynthesis process. When a leaf starts turning black, it might be unable to capture prey. However, it is still able to help in the photosynthesis process.

In the beginning you might observe black spot in the edges of a trap or starting in the leaf base. Be patient, and do not remove the leaf right away. Instead, wait until they have wholly withered to take action. Once they have died, then you can trim them out.

The only exception to this rule, is when there is a dead bug inside a trap. Sometimes, due to improper feeding or maybe due to natural causes, a leaves starts dying while holding a bug. You can trim that leaves once it has start withering. Because the dead insect can attract bacteria or mold to your plant. Also, since the dead bug is still decomposing, it might emit unpleasant smells.

How to Prune a Venus Flytrap?

Use a sharp scissor to remove the black leaves. Follow these considerations to do it properly:

Benefits of Pruning Venus Flytraps

Remember, trimming your Venus flytrap is completely optional. In the wild, Venus flytraps produce black leaves fairly often and it doesn’t cause any problem. There, the black leaves decompose naturally over long periods. Still, pruning your plant can bring several benefits:

• Increase growth: dead leaves cause a strain in your plant. Remove the black leaves to let your plant focus on growing larger and increasing the number of healthy traps.
• Prevent Mold, Rooting, and Pests: Large quantities of dead foliage can increase the change of mold (this is how you can get rid mold) or bacteria .
• Clean Looks: Most people get very concerned when they spot black leaves in a Venus flytrap. In the end, black leaves do not look very appealing. Groom your plant now and then to give it a clean look and highlight the traps.
• Avoid Overcrowding: In the wild, dead leaves decompose a lot faster than at home or in a garden, due to more exposure to microorganisms. In a pot, dead leaves take months to decompose naturally. And besides the strain in the plant. The dead foliage can take up space and prevent new leaves from growing correctly.

Black Leaves vs Yellow Leaves in Venus Flytraps

Not all leaves turn black when they wither. Sometimes Venus flytraps exhibit yellow or brown leaves. Black leaves are in many cases harmless as they are due to natural causes. Yellow leaves, on the other hand, are a common warning sign or improper growing conditions. Yellow leaves eventually wither and turn black, but in the beginning, they start to decay by exhibiting a yellow or light brown coloration.

Similarly to black leaves, if you only spot one yellow leave in your whole plant. It might be insignificant. Instead, worry if you notice a pattern of yellowing leaves. Yellow leaves can be caused by improper soil, overwatering, root rot, and wrong water source.

Final Thoughts

Sometimes it can be stressful to be a beginner Venus flytrap grower. Venus flytraps are beautiful carnivorous plants, but they have very specific care requirements. Changes in growing conditions can affect these plants’ health and livelihood.

Generally, a new trap should grow for every dead one. Start to worry or take action if you notice an increase in black leaves on your Venus flytrap. The only exception is the dormancy period.

I hope you were able to identify the cause of the black leaves in your plant. If you are still unsure, consult our Complete Venus Flytrap Care Instructions. Verify your growth setup is optimum and continue improving it over time. Best of luck!

Complete Venus Flytrap Care Instructions

Sources

• [1] https://www.ndsu.edu/pubweb/chiwonlee/plsc211/student%20papers/articles02/dhodgson/dhodgson.html
• D’Amato, P. (2013). The Savage Garden. Berkeley, Unites States: Ten Speed Press.