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arielletea

Different Venus Flytrap Question

arielletea
13 years ago

Okay well about a week ago i got 2 little venus fly traps from a local nursery and they were soooo healthy and beautiful. They were in the terraniums and it said to keep them there so I did for a few days to get them accustomed to the new atmosphere, but I read they don't need to be in them and I'd prefer them not to be. Since I dont have time/money to re-pot them and they are so new I'm not worrying about that right now. I left them in the sun for a whole day outside of the terranium and now one is all dead but not black, it's a lightish brown. The other one the tips of the traps are turning black and where they used to almost all be opened, they are all closed now.

I know I have to water with distilled water but I cannot afford it right now so I use my bottled water and called the company and they said it was sodium- free. I am keeping them in the plastic containers and in as much sunlight as my balcony can get in 1/4 of water in a tupperware container. At night i put them back in the terrarium and under 3 15 watt fluorescents.

I am willing to get knew ones but I'd rather not...One is only got black in some spots do you think I could salvage them and what am i doing wrong?

Thanks so much for any help these are my first carnivorous and I love them to death.

Comments (12)

  • taz6122
    13 years ago

    You have to harden them off before sticking them in full sun. You'll have time to look it up before you get new plants in the FAQ section. You are baking them in the terrariums in the sun. You HAVE to use distilled, RO or rain water. If you can't afford $ .87-.99 or catch rain water then give up on CPs. These will probably not survive. On top of baking them you have given them mineral rich water. We've all made similar mistakes with our fist VFTs.

  • hunterkiller03
    13 years ago

    The reason we recommend to use distilled water, rainwater or, R/O water is not because we are concerned about the sodium in it. The only water that has sodium is sea water.

    What we want to avoid is minerals like calcium in drinking water. R/O water has gone through reveres osmosis eliminate most of the minerals dissolved in the water but not all so it is used as a last resort to water CPs.

    I agree with taz, you exposed them to dry air and under the sun, literally baking them. When you say brown, do you mean on the leaves or whatÂs called bulb of the plant?

    You don't need to repot them, you can flush the soil with distilled water and they can grow fine. Besides, repotting shocked plants will kill them. I also agree with taz's 2nd poin that if you can afforded to buy the right water for them, better give up trying to grow CPs. You wont have them survive very long if you insist giving them only drinking water.

  • taz6122
    13 years ago


    The only water that has sodium is sea water.

    That's not true at all. You should do a little researching on bottled waters, water sources and salt content. My tap has some salt in it. Sometimes RO systems containing softeners also leak a little salt if not running properly. Even some bottles of distilled water ?? sometimes has some salt and mineral traces. It's best to catch rain water or do a ppm test on any water you give your plants.

  • petiolaris
    13 years ago

    The above two covered things well. I was looking to see where you are from and... well... rain doesn't look like a viable option. Albert Hammond said so.

  • arielletea
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Yes I am from Southern California...I'm lucky if it rains sometime in the next 6 months, which it wont.

    So I bought distilled water today, cheaper than I thought it would be. On my brown one, everything is brown, the leaf the trap and all. the other one just the little hairs on the trap mouth are black, but I've been hardening them off and it's kinda starting to open up...does that mean i can salvage this one?

    And i should take it out and wash it off with distilled and put it back in it's pots? And it's okay I took them out of the terrariums, right? cos they have been for a few days now.

    I thought you couldnt use bottled water because it has sodium in it, good to know. So if I change my watering process i should be okay?

    Thanks so much for the answers

  • taz6122
    13 years ago

    Yes you should be ok if your plant is adjusting to the lower humidity and sun. Don't force it though, acclimate it slowly increasing the hours of exposure by 1-2 each day.

  • hunterkiller03
    13 years ago

    Gee-wheez Taz

    don't like people making little jests?

  • taz6122
    13 years ago


    don't like people making little jests?

    Don't cry! Jests like that will cost someone their plants. When I jest, I add something like "LOL" etc. Personally I think you were serious and just don't know any better.

  • petiolaris
    13 years ago

    Another alternative to buying distilled water is to locate a nearby laboratory that might be willing to let you fill up jugs with their "purified water", which could take the form of WFI (water for injection), DI (deionized water), or the aforementioned RO (reverse osmosis). I used to work for an environmental lab and was given permission to use as much deionized water as I needed. Now I work for a pharmaceutical company and they allow me to take home the "expired" purified water.

  • arielletea
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Thank you so much for everyone's help I really appreciate it! I'm not sure how long I should leave them in the water before changing it and how often they should be in or out of it...but they seem to be doing a bit better since I bought the distilled water.

  • petiolaris
    13 years ago

    You shouldn't need to change the water unless it is contaminated. I would wait until the standing water has nearly evaporated and pour water from overhead, allowing it to drain through. A half inch or so of standing water is close enough.

  • taz6122
    13 years ago

    Agreed. You want the media constantly moist but not waterlogged or dry. Anywhere from 1/4" to 2" standing water depending on pot height.

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