You are here:

Carnivorous Plants/how to grow venus fly trap seed

Advertisement

Expert: - 9/5/2010


Question
Hi how do i grow venus flytrap from seed.

Answer
Hello Ian,

Growing Venus Flytraps from seed is quite simple. You fill a pot with 1:1 ratio of unfertilized sphagnum peat moss and perlite, keep it moist at all times, drop the seeds on the soil surface with only the slightest of granulated moss covering them barely, keep them under bright 40 watt florescent shop lights or in a very bright, sunny, south facing window and in 70-80 degree temperatures, and wait a couple of weeks. If your ambient humidity is around 50% you will not need a humidity dome. You should see tiny seedling Flytraps after two to six weeks, sometimes longer. It will take them 2-5 years to grow to maturity from seed.

Christopher

Carnivorous Plants

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

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.

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.