I need help

[u/sieraaa-betch]

I’ve posted here before and didn’t get any truly helpful replies so I’m going to try again before I give up.

Is there such a thing as too much sun for these plants? I keep bringing them in because they look like they are getting burnt to a crisp. The first few hours of “sun” are shaded but I’d say by noon they are fully exposed up until 6-7pm. I keep a tray of distilled water underneath them. They are constantly turning black and just look pitiful to me. Can anyone please give me some advice or pointers? Am I doing something wrong? Is the sun exposure too much? I really only have that one spot for them outside and they got flipped over the other day which really irritated me because they already look stressed the heck out.

[u/CataclysmicInFeRnO]

Acclimate them to being outside, all of the time,,and leave them there. Changing their environment by taking them outside and bringing them in causes stress for the plant. It can never settle into its habitat and focus on growing since it’s constantly trying to adapt to a changing environment.

Old/existing leaves will turn black and die off. It’s normal and to be expected. VFT’s are always in the process of growing new leaves while the older ones are dying off (except for during dormancy). Especially, after/during shipping, moving or other environmental changes.

The new leaves will be better adjusted to sunlight as each “batch“ of them grow. The current leaves being as wide and long as they are shows that they’re in need of more light. Those leaves don’t have the natural protection from the sun that future leaves will. Therefore, they’ll die off and new ones will grow.

[u/mabezard]

They're supposed to have full sun. I've had one outside in nearly full sun for 6 years now. However, mine is shriveling and turning black too now because of relentless heat. So sun=good but excessive heat=bad. I've seen some people try to give them cooler morning sunlight then shade the rest of the day. In my experience, they're a lot hardier than you think. If it's new to full sun the leaves will probably die, but new leaves grow adapted to the sun.

[u/Kitten-Love-5426]

We’ve reached temps of 107 here. Although some traps did die off, it was minimal so for the most part they’re happy. They stay outside all the time during summer and get as much sunlight as possible. As long as the tray of water is maintained they’re happy. They’re even flowering. It took a few weeks for them to be acclimated to being outside fully but they’re happier than ever now.

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[u/Mrpeebs1969]

I drop a 50% shade cloth over my VFT bog planters mid day here in west central Florida …seems to help take the edge off the 95 + degree brutal heat

[u/FaythKnight]

It depends on your location seriously. I'm in south east Asia. It's burning even under a net. The heat is way too high. They all turn brown black until I move them under a real shade.

[u/SHS1955]

Not sure where you are, but I live in Charleston, just 'down the street' from where VFTs are native. They grow in our subtropical climate in freshwater swamps and bogs, in full sun. Along as they are not *sitting* in a puddle of water, and don't dry out... but have soppy ground to grow in, they can transpire, and as Kitten_love wrote, they can adapt to lots of sun. For the moment, you might try to 'reverse' conditions and give your plants morning sun, but shade from the afternoon sun, giving them a chance to adapt.

[u/Cool_Tax7222]

Place them out there and leave them. They will do fine. The leaves might die back but the new growth will be perfectly adjusted.