I just got a venus fly trap and have a couple of questions.?

Question

What are your tips for keeping one healthy as possible:

such as temperatures it should be in

how much water it should be given

the whole winter in a fridge thing i ve heard about

what to feed and how much

how much sun it needs

do you need to feed every "mouth"?

and other helpful tips

thx 4 ur answers :]]]]

Answer 1

more info here, too...

http://www.google.com/search?um=1&hl=en&...

this one looks good, too...

http://www.flytrapcare.com/

Answer 2

http://www.sarracenia.com/faq.html

That site is by far the BEST site for info on keeping your carnivorous plants alive and healthy.  It'll answer all your questions.  Sorry I'm too lazy to answer them here (especially because you've only gotten one other answer) but that site will answer everything you need to know better than I can.

Answer 3

Congratulations on your new plant! There are three major points to keeping a Venus fly trap healthy.

1) Sunlight

2) Water

3) Soil

Venus fly traps like lots of light. Try to give it at least 4 hours of direct sunlight a day. The more you can give it the better. It is best to grow your fly trap outside where it can get plenty of sun and catch its own food. If you bought it from a store where it was inside, you will have to acclimate it to sunlight by putting it in shade for a few days, then give it an hour of sunlight one day, a couple hours the next day, etc.

Venus fly traps need clean water. Usually tap water will not do. It is best to use distilled water, rain water, or reverse osmosis water. Venus fly traps need water with a TDS (total dissolved soilds) measurement of 50 ppm (parts per million) or less. In order to get this, you probably need to use distilled water or reverse osmosis water or rain water. Their soil should be kept wet at all times from spring to fall (when they aren't dormant). It is best to use a tray and set the plant in about 1/2 inch of water. Humidity isn't that important. Fly traps can live fine in low humidity conditions. I have about a hundred plants and I live in Colorado where the humidity in the summer is very low. They do great so long as they get plenty of sunlight and clean water.

I would guess that your plant came potted already, so the media that it is potted in is probably fine. But if you need to repot it, which wouldn't be a bad idea, you should use a combination of peat moss and perlite.

You don't ever need to feed your flytrap anything.  However, if you choose to do so, don't over do it.  One or 2 bugs a month will be fine.  If you grow it outside, and you really should, then it will catch all its own food.

With regards to winter dormancy, you have several options and the refrigerator method is your last resort.  To read all of your options, see this article:

http://www.flytrapcare.com/venus-fly-tra...

Good luck with your fly trap and enjoy growing it!

You can read more about how to care for venus fly traps here:

http://www.flytrapcare.com

Also, if you have any more questions, join the forum and ask them there:

http://www.flytrapcare.com/phpBB3

Answer 4

Try this site:

http://www.mycarnivore.com/care_venusfly...

DO NOT feed the traps except for your own amazement.  Feeding small gnat sized bugs to the traps will lead to the trap dying.  Larger size flies and bugs may cause the trap to rot.  The plant gets its main nourishment from it's roots.  Feeding the traps is not necessary for its survival when grown in a controlled environment.  (You use better soil than their natural habitat)

I kept mine in a fish bowl or fish tank and put cellophane across the top.  It allows you to control the moisture better.  The plant loves a moist (not wet) environment