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Carnivorous Plants

Connie and I are actually talking about trying out hand at making some small bogs for the purpose of growing insectivorous plants. We're thinking about sinking small plastic children's pools into the ground with some drainage holes drilled into the sides. I've read where some people recommend an inside and outside pool with a hole in the bottom of the inside pool, creating a sort of moat around the inner pool. Not sure that would work here, as I would hate to be promoting healthy populations of mosquitoes. So open water will be a no-no.

We will have to use bottled distilled water if the rains aren't frequent enough, as the well water we have here is heavily mineralized. We do have a small water distiller for drinking water, but I don't think it could keep up with the volume needed for both our needs and the plants' needs.

So I'm thinking I don't want to sink a lot of money into the plants, as there is a pretty good chance that our fumbling first steps in this will probably kill them off. Plus if Connie finds a baby green anole killed by any of them, then the plants will be history.

How well do flytraps grow from seeds? I see quite a few people selling seed packets for them.
 
rich
i wouldn't bother with a double pool. the kiddy pool version is super easy. just drill a hole half way up the sides and about 8 inches apart to drain excess water. you may be surprised at how much water it takes to initially wet the peat. for the media, i do 1:1 peat and sand, if i'm potting them i mix perlite in there too. flytraps are super easy from seed. mix perlite and sand at 1:1 and get it really good and wet. sprinkle the seeds on top, don't cover them. put the pot in a plastic baggy and set in the fridge for 6 weeks. after the stratification time put the whole thing in a sunny window and you should have germination in anywhere from a week to two months depending on your temps. vft and sarrs need to go dormant in the winter. not sure what the winter weather is like in tallahassee. if you need sources for plants, let me know and i'll send you the emails of some great growers.
 
I was thinking about getting a kids swimming pool to use. Because I cannot dig up the back yard (landlord might not like that).... But, then I relized that I didn't need to purchase anything, because I already have tubs around the house. I will see what I have that I can use. and if nothing fits, I will find something else.
 
codymi said:
rich
i wouldn't bother with a double pool. the kiddy pool version is super easy. just drill a hole half way up the sides and about 8 inches apart to drain excess water. you may be surprised at how much water it takes to initially wet the peat. for the media, i do 1:1 peat and sand, if i'm potting them i mix perlite in there too. flytraps are super easy from seed. mix perlite and sand at 1:1 and get it really good and wet. sprinkle the seeds on top, don't cover them. put the pot in a plastic baggy and set in the fridge for 6 weeks. after the stratification time put the whole thing in a sunny window and you should have germination in anywhere from a week to two months depending on your temps. vft and sarrs need to go dormant in the winter. not sure what the winter weather is like in tallahassee. if you need sources for plants, let me know and i'll send you the emails of some great growers.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips! Might be kind of too late for working with seeds this year, though. Not enough room in the fridge for seedlings and Spring time is pretty much here already. Well, except for the 25 and 27 degree nights they are predicting for Saturday and Sunday.... :awcrap: Going to be some very surprised plants around here that were thinking that sort of crap was done for this year. It does get chilly here, but not too many plants would consider it as any sort of dormancy, I guess. With some of the fruit trees we've planted, it's going to be iffy as to us having enough chill hours for them.
 
So, It looks like I will be getting an artificial pond for my bog garden. I want to set it up with the bog plants around the shallow sides, and have a few little fish in the deeper portion. I will be building a table with the leftover lumber from my failed snake rack attempt. As soon as my tax refund comes in, this project will be starting. Just need to find all the screws and batteries for my tools. I also decided to start some Venus Flytrap seeds on my porch. I can't wait to see them sprout.
 
don't give up on the seeds, they can take hella long to germinate. i'm at 6 weeks for some of mine and still no green.
 
Wow... I read somewhere that placing them in a warm, well sunlit area may help speed up germination. So I have them in the best sunlight I can offer then in the house, and put a small heating pad under them to warm the media and hopefully get them to sprout quickly... If it doesn't work then maybe some of the seeds I will get off the web will sprout. Also Codymi, have you seen this site yet? http://www.flytrapcare.com/
 
i've been there before but never registered. i prefer terra forums, because it covers all areas of cp's and i mainly grow sarracenia with a few other genus' thrown in.
 
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