To start with, D. madagascariensis are not pygmy sundews, like D. capensis; D. madagascariensis grow in the continent of Africa. Second, pygmy sundews are not tropical, they are semi-tropical like the tuberous sundews. A semi-tropical means that the climate goes through a period of desert like drought part of the year and then is followed by a very humid wet season.

In Australia it has that type of climate, during summer between November and January, it is very hot and dry so the pygmy sundews dies down to a tight little bulb covered with silvery hair. During the winter season, which start in June and ends about September, the climate is humid and cold. Other then that, dormancy isnÂt really necessary for the pygmy sundews as long as they are grown under bright light and their growing media moist.

I donÂt know what conditions you may be growing your sundews but this is how I grow my three pygmies, D. nitidula ssp. omissa, nitidula ssp. allantostigma, and occidentalis ssp. occidentalis.

I have mined growing in media 1 part sphagnum peat moss, 1 part perlite, and 2 parts silica sand. I keep my pots sitting on tray with distilled water, making sure the media is humid. I donÂt grow my plants in a terrarium since it causes the sundews to rot so I have mine growing in an environment less then 15% humid, its my bedroom so the humidity is quite low. IÂve heard they donÂt make good terrarium plants but there will always be someone that will disagree. The trick is not have the humidity too high and keep their media just moist or it will kill the pygmies with rot.

For light I use 4 of these 30 watt compact fluorescent bulbs of about 2000 lumens growing about a foot above my plants, some have them a little bit lower but mines do fine with my set-up. They are growing alongside my neps, sundews, utricularia, and Mexican pinguiculas.

Everyone has a preference about growing their pygmies, as always. What works for someone for some reason doesnÂt work for someone else. But hopefully this may help and even give you an idea what you may be doing wrong. Maybe itÂs the pots, or the soil you are using. One time I purchased by accident sphagnum peat moss with fertilizer added to it and because I failed to read the package, I killed some sundews and sarracenias and not all peat moss is sphagnum peat moss. So you canÂt be too careful.

Hope you have good luck with your plants.

I got a free D. nitidula x ericksoniae from Cobra Plant and it has been thriving for the past few months. I thought it wasn't going to do well because of lack of light, but it has really taken off.

After having a good deal of beginner's luck with my scorpioides, i haven't been able to get them through the summer alive (also dichrosepla). Every other pygmy sundew thrived this summer, outdoors, with 85-90 degree heat.

D. madagascraiensis (henceforth referred to as D. mad...)is a strange plant. It's lower portion characteristically dies back, looking like a forest fire, but the newest part is very alive. Also, it does produce new plants from the roots.

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Follow hunter killer's advice.

Thanks for the advice. I think the soil is fine. I used the same mix I use for my sars, fly traps & other sundews, just a bit more perlite.

Interesting that the D mad grow from the roots, i thought it may have been from seeds fallen in the compost? My scorpodies do well in the summer, but a couple of weeks before much cooler weather they wither like petiolaris picture of the fried D mad stalks. Does the same apply to the scorpodies, or are they toast?

One thing I learned about pygmy sundews is that they grow for a few years then they die, so it is very important to have it produce gemmae to keep your collection of pygmies going. My original few plants already died after purchasing them from California Carnivores a few years back but I still have my collection going.

You can see the cluster of plants surrounding the dead parent pygmies. D. nitidula ssp. omissa on top, D. occidentalis ssp. occidentalis bottom image.
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I made the mistake of having my first pygmies I purchased grow without letting produce gemmae at least once, then one day they died. No more plants, no more collection of pygmies sundews. Only empty little pots to show all my efforts gone to waist in one season.

So let it produce gemmae by lowering the light levels.

Good luck!

I have some pygmies (see above) that have a bunch of flower stalks sticking out. I was just under the impression that they created gemmae which would fall and create new ones. Is there something you have to do different to make them produce gemmae?

There's something about D. scorpioides & dichrospela that make them more challenging than nitidulas, palaceaes, etc... and it seems to have something to do with how much moisture is provided in the summer. Supposedly, they are intended to have a hot, dry summer, followed by cool and wet fall and winter. So one is supposed to simulate those conditions. It never seemed to matter with the nitidulas and other, gut scorpiodes and dischrosepala give me headaches.

Gemmae: The cool and wet fall is when the gemmae are produced. They should be producing them now.