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Carnivorous Plants/Thrips on VFT flowers stealing the pollen

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Expert: - 6/5/2009


Question
Last year I had thrips on my VFT flowers that stole all the pollen, thus no germination & no seeds. This year, the thrips are back! (and my pitcher plants bloomed for the first time!) I am 'harvesting' some VFT pollen & hand-pollinating the flowers since the thrips steal it all before the stigma is receptive, but how can I prevent this problem next year? I live in the DFW Texas area, grow in full sun, water with rain water only & the rest of my CP's are doing well. Thanks for your help.

Answer
Hello Beth,

The following article gives several good pointers for controlling thrips: http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/gh-thrips.html

I would also suggest Neem oil as a repellant and killer that acts as an antifungal too. You can get premixed Neem oil with pyrethrines, which is what I use, as a one-two punch for killing insects since both substances repel and kill insects of most varieties.

Good going with your Pitcher Plants!

Christopher

Carnivorous Plants

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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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