Subject: Help With Venus FlyTrap

From: [email-masked] (Dio Lazo)
Date: 6 Jun 1995 06:18:57 GMT

I need desperate help with how to care for a venus flytrap.  I have read so
many conflicting article how its care, so I've decidecd to post to
this newsgroup for answers!
This is what happens when I get my vennus flytrap:
1. At the nursery, the traps are BIG and RED inside.  This close QUICKLY
2. In about 2-3 weeks the new traps that sprout get smaller and smaller
   so small that it is the size of an ant
3. The traps are not red inside anymore, plus they close very slowly
4. When I feed it a bug, the trap rots with the bug inside the trap
  while the trap is digesting the meal
5. In the long run, the traps become small and then deformed
6. after a while the plant dies

I bought another one today. The instructons said to use distilled,
purified or rain water becuase tap water has too much crap in it.
It said during the winter monts, november to april, the trap goes into
a dormant state and that at this time, I should keep the soil dry. It 
says this will aid it when it regrows in may-october.

What I need to know is
1. Should the soil be moist at ALL times
2. How often should I feed it
3. Most importantly, what am i doing wrong in caring for my plant? Why
does it die so quickly and the traps become so deformed and small
Thanks for any and all advice.
Dio

---

From: Ben Levin <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 6 Jun 1995 16:51:58 -0400

Dio,

  First of all,  the soil should almost always be moist;  in fact during the 
growing period (spring through fall) you should even stand the pot in a tray 
of water.  And the instructions were right about the water;  it should be 
rain or,  if you can get it,  distilled water.  Deionized water can give 
you problems so I'd stay away from that.
  During the dormant period (winter) don't leave the pot in the tray of 
water.  However NEVER let the soil completely dry out,  especially not 
for long periods of time;  that can kill the plant.
  Second,  the best way to feed the VFT is to leave it outside during the 
day (or during the whole growing season for that matter,  as I do).  The 
plants will feed themselves quite well!
  Another thing you might want to think about is light.  VFT's like alot 
of light,  direct sunlight is the best.
  What I do is I leave the plant out from the spring (the end of May) 
'til fall (after the first or second frost).  Then I take them inside and 
leave them on a south facing window 'til it's time to move 'em out.

Hope this helps.

Ben
[email-masked]