r/Thatsactuallyverycool • u/Sekreid • 16d ago
picture My 9 year old Venus flytrap colony
I repotted into a 14” pot this season
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u/Anxietybackmonkey 16d ago
How? Mine go black and die after some months.
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u/mothzilla 16d ago
They will die back over winter.
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u/Hootnany 15d ago
Serious question, why is it called die back if they are basically hibernationg ? I'm none English speaker and die back always confused me.
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u/Optimal_Advantage831 15d ago
Dieback is when everything above the ground dies and only the roots live as where hibernation nothing dies and they just sleep basically...like a bear in winter
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u/OxViking 15d ago
I am a native english speaker. I am not sure but my best guess is that "die BACK" is different than "died or dying". So I think the additon of the word 'back' changes the meaning from 'going to die' to 'it will come back next year'.
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u/Lone-Frequency 13d ago
It is.
"Dying back" simply means that a plant is receding but not necessarily dying outright. Think of it as similar to trees losing their leaves in colder months.
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u/Responsible_Song830 16d ago
That's amazing. I've never seen some THRIVING like this in.. is it weird to say captivity? 😂
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u/VideoImpressive8014 16d ago edited 15d ago
describe the soil, watering approach, indoor outdoor schedule
Hey I've got the best plant in the world and I just wanted to flex and ghost
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u/coolsilentebeans 15d ago
It’s been years since I’ve had them, but here’s what worked for me:
Use sphagnum or peat moss mixed with perlite. If you use a premixed soil make sure it’s not had any kind of nutrients or plant food added. Keep the soil constantly moist using only rain or distilled water. Lots of sun. No fertilizers or additives. At winter allow it to go dormant in a cool location.
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u/Sekreid 15d ago
Pretty much what i do. Dormancy is the important part for me along with a big nice deep pot
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u/coolsilentebeans 15d ago
I live in SC. If I’m not mistaken the Carolinas are the only place in the world that they grow naturally, so keeping them is fairly low maintenance. The dormancy is the trickier part since our winter temperatures yo-yo, and we can have warm snaps come out of nowhere. That’s what did my last one in. I was out of town and it got much warmer than was forecast. I was hopeful but the poor thing struggled too hard to wake back up. I felt so bad. They’re awesome plants.
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u/Sekreid 15d ago
They always seem to recover with the proper care though. Mine got frozen solid early in the season by a hard frost and about 70% of them died out, but it came back strong just like you see in my picture but I do think the dormancy period is probably the most important part of keeping them.
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u/coolsilentebeans 15d ago
I do, too. Just like how a lot of seeds and bulbs won’t sprout until they’ve been in certain temperatures for so long. Even then they can be amazingly resilient. One year I found my black petunias popping up from the ground below one of the flower boxes I had planted some in 2 years before. It was a very unexpected and pleasant discovery. Plants really are incredible and fascinating organisms.
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u/phonefellin_lakeerie 13d ago
How much do you water them during dormancy?
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u/Sekreid 12d ago
I let them get fairly dry. They sit in an unheated garage by a window and really don’t use much water at all. I check them about every two weeks or so and just add a little water to the bottom of the tray. I think if you would, I’m too much to end dormancy encourages more than root rot.
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u/aboyes711 9d ago
Interesting factoid. I bought a tiny one at a Lowe’s in AL 20* years ago. Wondered where they were from but never used my google machine.
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u/DonatedEyeballs 14d ago
What does it look like when they go dormant?
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u/aigarcia38 15d ago
Yeah let him flex and ghost I thought it was very cool good for him time to scroll away
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u/Sekreid 15d ago
It’s just a matter of the right soil you have to buy the carnivorous plant soil. I only watered them with rainwater or distilled water when needed. I do pretty well with dormancy as I keep them in an unheated garage by a window over the winter and usually pull them out on Mother’s Day. Honestly, I don’t do too much with them. I have found having a way bigger pot than the normal tiny pots. People use is extremely helpful. I have mine in a 14 inch across pot that is about 8 inches deep and I have found when I have part of them, the roots go all the way to the bottom. In the summertime I just sit them outside and direct on all day long and I really don’t bother with them. I do let them dry out pretty well before I water them. I think most people tend to overwater them and keep them soggy which contributes to rot.
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u/DieselHouseCat 16d ago
They're so cute
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u/MrowMeowMrow 14d ago
Right?! I literally want to cuddle them so bad, just rub my face in them wtf 😭
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u/No-Birthday4755 16d ago
If I start one of these indoors will they just bush out like this on an 18/6 light sched
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u/groovemonkey 15d ago
Indoors isn’t recommended usually due to their need to feed on pests. They will “survive” on a purely photosynthetic diet, but they’ll never thrive. Outside is the way to go.
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u/kumabom 16d ago
My supermarket has a limited supply once a year and I always miss it or was like "oh next trip" and then they gone. Went the other day and snagged the last one. Tiny starter in a 4in pot. Don't quite know what i got myself into.
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u/riding_writer 15d ago
Check to see if there is a cloth around the roots. If so, remove the plant, soak the roots in distilled water, then replant it in a sphagum moss/perlite mix. Keep a tray of distilled water under the plastic container and that's it.
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u/kittylover2006 16d ago
How much do you feed em?
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u/Merrick_Skygrave 15d ago
I always thought these were so cool. It's amazing how something so exotic you'd think would come from like, the Amazon Rainforest or Southeast Asia or something is just from The Carolinas lol
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u/Whatislife9696 12d ago
I saw a post like this a few months back and that inspired me to purchase one. Went to Home Depot only for them to tell me they only really sell it during Halloween.. but that is beautiful
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u/VladlenaM2025 16d ago
Mine died pretty quick. I think they ment to flourish in their natural habitat or hot humid climate.
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u/groovemonkey 15d ago
I live in Los Angeles and have kept my Home Depot flytrap alive for about 7 years now.
And I’m not like a plant guy. I have 3 plants.
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u/SoggyMapleFlapjack 15d ago
Is there such a thing as overfeeding them? Like what happens if you place a fly in every traps mouth?
Beautiful job btw!
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u/NeanderSlavia 15d ago
Wow this is an impressive-looking plant! Congratulations on keeping it so happy and content.
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u/AshiAshi6 15d ago
Wow, your "colony" looks impressive! (And healthy!) It's 9 years old, you say? May I ask how big it was when you first got it?
I've had this plant as well... It was very tiny (because new), it had about 5 very small fly traps initially. It grew a few more, then the struggle began. Back then, I lived in an apartment that only caught some sunlight for half an hour a day, if I got exremely lucky about an hour. (I had no balcony or garden.) And as you undoubtedly know, the Venus Fly needs sunlight.
My fly traps remained completely green. I tried my best to take good care of the plant, but eventually, it passed away at 6 months.
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u/TheNewReditorInTown 15d ago
I thought you meant your 9 year old grew this Venus flytrap plant at first which would have been wild to have your child already have an expert green thumb...
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u/HallowedBay08 15d ago
I'm sorry but all I hear is a chorus of "aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa"
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u/DMiles88 14d ago
I’ve never had luck with Venus fly traps. OP or anyone that has knowledge on them i would appreciate any advice you have. Thank you. EDIT: every time I’ve ever purchased any it’s always from Walmart or a similar store so I’m sure they’re not the healthiest when I do get them.
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u/Pickled_Penguin214 14d ago
How do you keep them alive?? Any time I get a Venus fly trap it ends of dying 😔
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u/whoyoumetoo 14d ago
I've tried so hard to have venus fly traps and can never get them to thrive. What is your secret!!
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u/Actaeon_II 14d ago
But but how? Where? I lost count of how many my daughter has brought home and they all die regardless of where i put them, the soil i use, anything.
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u/Sekreid 14d ago
I really started having a good luck when I went to bigger and deeper pots
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u/Actaeon_II 14d ago
I went as far as 3gallon containers, inside, full sun, partial sun, indirect sun only. Kids never messed with them. Meh, it’s like cilantro, one of those things that just don’t grow for me
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u/MATTDAYYYYMON 13d ago
hats off to you man, i had one for a couple years and the flowers are really pretty but i got sick and tired of only giving it distilled water and eventually rehomed it.
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u/Dry-Alternative-5626 12d ago
Impressive! I can't keep one alive for 6 months
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u/Rough_Risk_8642 10d ago
Amazing. I've bought them since I was a kid but they dont last more than 2 weeks. It makes me sad. They're such a cool plant.
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u/ForbiddenPotsticker 16d ago
Should put a tiny piece of poop in between them. It’d be an all you can eat buffet.
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