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Carnivorous Plants/Venus flytrap winter dormancy in Ohio

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Expert: - 12/10/2008


Question
My venus fly trap recently suffered a 3 week spell of dryness due to my being ill and forgetting to water it.  Once I noticed the dryness I immediately watered it and asked you guys if you thought it could still be alive.  Well, after following Jeff's instructions, I dug it up and found lots of white firm tissue, even bits of green indicating that it is clinging to life.  My question now is, since I've watered and repotted it, would it be ok to put the whole thing in a zip lock back and put it back into that cool, east facing window until spring?

Answer
Hello Tina,

I think you intended to ask Sarracenia Northwest about this, however; I will help as much as I can.

Since your Venus Flytrap was probably dormant by the sound of things it might survive the dry spell. Just keep it hydrated from now on with just enough water to keep its soil moist all the time.

There really should be no reason to place the plant in a plastic bag if the window the plant is in is cool, but not freezing to the point of turning everything to a block of ice. The key temperature would be about 40 degrees for a good dormancy.

I hope your plant pulls through the dry spell,

Christopher

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Christopher Littrell

Expertise

I am capable of answering questions about the most common carnivorous plants found in cultivation. I have no personal experience with Byblis, Drosophyllum, Aldrovanda, and Heliamphora. I have not cultivated gemmae forming pygmy sundews nor tuberous sundews. For information regarding those aforementioned species, I would suggest contacting other experts. I can answer questions regarding most species of Nepenthes, tropical and temperate Drosera, Mexican Pinguicula, Sarracenias, and Dionaea. I have some limited experience with growing Utricularia, Cephalotus, and Darlingtonia.

Experience

I have grown carnivorous plants off and on for about 27 years. I have made the same mistakes and suffered the same mishaps that many growers make as they attempt to separate the myths from the realities of growing these plants. Currently, I am successfully growing a variety of tropical sundews, a Nepenthes, several Venus Flytraps of varying ages, and Sarracenias. I have been successful in stratifying Sarracenia seeds and providing artificial dormancy requirements for my temperate plants when needed.

Education/Credentials
I hold a Master's degree in Educational Psychology. Over my lifetime, I have constantly read books involving the growing conditions of carnivorous plants. I hope to incorporate the educational aspects involved in psychology with teaching other people how to cultivate carnivorous plants.

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