As you can already tell, I love unusual plants and I by no means an expert. I do have a little experience which is shared with you on this page. Please click here for all the information you will ever need on carnivorous plants. Purchasing from them is a sure bet!

On this page, my experience is only with pitcher plants... which love wet feet. Other species may prefer a dryer medium. Please do your research.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Carnivorous plants (sometimes called insectivorous plants) are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients (but not energy) from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, most focusing on insects and other arthropods. Carnivorous plants usually grow in places where the soil is thin or poor in nutrients, especially nitrogen, such as acidic bogs and rock outcroppings. Charles Darwin wrote the first well-known treatise on carnivorous plants in 1875.[1]

True carnivory is thought to have evolved in at least 10 separate lineages of plants, and these are now represented by more than a dozen genera in 5 families. These include about 625 species that attract and trap prey, produce digestive enzymes, and absorb the resulting available nutrients. Additionally, over 300 protocarnivorous plant species in several genera show some but not all these characteristics.

I you want to order a great book called "Growing Carnivorous Plants" by Barry Rice, click here.

I have had a fascination with carnivorous plants since I was a kid. My first was a Venus Flytrap and I killed it because I put it in an aquarium and babied it. You hear they need really high humididty, and with some species, this is correct. Mine were outside all winter sitting in water. I live in San Diego's east county and it does freeze in the winter. I basically made sure they had water and left them alone. They didn't look too good but I just trimmed off the old, dead leaves down as far as I could without harming any of the new growth. They are doing better than ever this summer.

My collection includes different species of pitcher plants. They seem really easy to grow. In fact, you will be amazed at how easy they are. I can't tell you about other species like Nepenthes because they need much more humididty that is available here. Many people grow them in terrariums but I hate killing plants, or you live in a hot, humid tropical-like evironment, give this plant a try. We are moving to northern Arizona and plan on building a 1,000sf greenhouse with a pond. Only then will I buy a Nepenthes.

I am unable to upload any pictures to my site at this time... instead, there are links to images on Sarracenia Northwest. I have only purchased my CP'S from them and I am more than happy with their plants and the way they pack and ship them. I highly recommend this company. I have always gotten extremely healthy plants from them and they ship really quickly.

My small collection includes :

White Top Pitcher, Tarnok Variety: Sarracenia leucophylla

Sarracenia alata x minor

Sarracenia rubra

Sarracenia x 'Scarlet Belle'

We have probably all heard about the "man-eating" plants that trapped and digested humans when we were young. While it is true that carnivorous plants (CP's) do trap and digest insects, there isn't a species (yet) that has been known to gobble up explorers in the wild. They do not need to be force fed insects to survive. Enjoying an insect treat once in a while, I catch ants for them once a month and just put them on the plant. Since the pots are surrounded by water, I know the ants didn't escape.Some species are large enough to catch small animals or reptiles

CP'S do not need to be fertilized. In fact, the tiniest bit of fertilizer killed mine when I started collecting about 3 years ago. Some people do give their plants a very diluted solution of fertilizer but it's not worth the risk, so, NEVER FERTILIZE YOUR CARNIVOROUS PLANTS!!

I do water mine from the top daily with filtered/bottled water. I have heard it is best to give them purified or distilled water. Any kind of filtered water is better than tap water but if you want strong, healthy plants, they will thrive on really clean distilled water. Some people have a reverse-osmosis (RO) system that purifies the water.

Most CP's grow in really wet environments or bogs. They receive unobstructed sunlight much of the time. I had mine in a mostly sunny location and noticed that the leaves were starting to die off. I moved them into a spot that receives sun all day and they are going crazy.

Some of us aren't lucky enough to live in an area that provides enough sunlight. Some collectors have had good luck with twin-tube flourescent light fixtures. I have used really expensive grow-light tubes for my Amorphophallus in the winter time and found that the cheaper plain tubes work just as well. If you do use a light, make sure you keep the leaves about 6"-12" (15-30cm) from the tube to prevent burning.

I have my CP'S potted up in a mixture of perlite and spaghnum peat moss. Other collectors use sand and peat moss. Don't use regular potting soil or your plants will die! This commercially available soil contains high concentrations of nutrients that will burn the roots. Peat moss holds water like a sponge and enables your plants to stay properly wet. Don't let them dry out, even for a short time.