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Carnivorous Plants/Venus flytraps and Pitcher plants

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Expert: - 5/25/2007


Question
Hi, I have 2 questions for you.  First how many traps can 1 venus flytrap produce at once? (The most one plant can have on it.)  And, how long does it take for a temparate pitcher plant to produce a pitcher?  Thanks.

Answer
Hello brain,

You might see as many as 3-5 traps being produced at one time from one growth point, but each leaf will be in a different stage of development. Adult leaves might number only 6 or as many as 12. Usually Flytraps loose older leaves after a few months, sooner if they are activated and capture insects constantly.

Temperate pitchers grow rather slowly and each has it's own growth rate. In general, it will take an average of about 3 weeks to observe complete maturity in a leaf from time of first sighting of it growing.

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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