You are here:

Carnivorous Plants/drosera spatulata

Advertisement

Expert: - 1/12/2012


Question
I live in Pennsylvania, zone 6, About three months ago, I bought two drosera spatulata from a garden store here. I hardened them out of their cubes, then put them in a south window, where I have all my other carnivorous plants, in a water tray, aided also by a compact florescent light, bigger than the standard bulb. They did fine and looked good for about two months, then suddenly began to turn black, the outside leaves first. Then, within less than a week, both were dead. One had been repotted into half peat/perlite, the other retained in the pure peat it came in. What could cause them to change and die so fast? Also, both have dried flower stalks with seeds. How do you gather the seeds and is it worth it, to try to sow them?

Answer
Hello Craig,

I really do not have enough information to answer specifically. What temperatures and type of water were they provided?

Since there is no telling what conditions they received in the garden store, we may never know what exactly killed them.

The seeds are definitely worth sowing. Sundew seeds often are very easy to sprout. Just sow them on the surface of some finely granulated peat and keep them moist at all times (spray the soil surface with a good mist of water at least once each morning) and keep them well lit and at room temperatures. They should sprout in a couple of weeks.

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.