I can't keep them alive, and I'm hoping with some basic tips from members here I can. A few questions.

1- what soil medium do I use? I read peat moss mixed with perlite works.
2- For watering I read keep in dish with water so it soaks up water, but also read not to have them soaking wet. This makes no sense, as in a water tray the soil will stay wet? In winter dormancy do I take the dish away and just water the pot periodically?
3- does tap water really hurt flytraps?
4- I'm keeping the pot near a sunny window that stays warm. But for winter dormancy I have another window that gets much cooler and less light, is that good to make it go dormant?
5- how often do you need to feed it insects? Do you feed insects during dormancy?

Soil: Something without any nutritional values. I use peat/perlite. BUT, those little bags of peat moss are fortified so you have to get something specifically for carnivorous plants or buy peat by the bale. You can also plant them in New Zealand Sphagnum Moss.

Watering: Always keep them in a couple inches of distilled, RO or rain water. Never allow the water to cover the crown of the plant. Yes, tap water really does hurt them - its the dissolved solids and salts.

Winter: move it to a spot with less than 40F temperatures for 4 or 5 months. They will survive in temps down to 20F so mine goes out to the deck for the winter. You can keep them a little drier in winter but not completely dry.

Feeding: You really don't need to feed them at all. They are green so photosynthesizing. Bugs are fertilizer - mine catches plenty on its own, even inside. The traps die after catching an insect - one use only.

Hope this helps.

Lucy68 covered it well.

Always check the on the back of the bag to see if any fertilizer has been added in the ingredients.
If it product is made by Miracle Grow, it's not for CP's!

I noticed the best growth I have with my VFTs, is equal parts peat moss and pool filter quartz sand. If you have any pool stores near you, you can get a 50lb bag for around $10.00. I'm almost out of my sand, and that bag I probably bought at least 4 years ago...price is probably double by now.

This is all the plants I got out of the triangular planter in front when I thinned it out. 3 flats = 96 plus whatever I left in the planter.




I will collect rain water for my CPs.
When all I grew was CP's I would sometimes run out of my 25-30 gallons I would store and would have to buy RO or distilled water.
Never use tap water. Some people say they can, I would not... I've actually tested my water with a TDS meter. My mineral count is higher then I'm willing to try on my plants.

I think you can keep VFT's drier then most people grow them. When I say drier, keep the soil moist, but does not need to be totally saturated.
If you ever visit the natural growing areas, they are typically in drier areas.
The thread "Green Swamp Preserve" in Carnivorous Plants forum

Are you able to grow the VFT outside?
Mine grow outside in full sun all day.

They come inside to an unheated garage (typically stays around 50 degrees F), no light, barely moist soil, when the daytime temps are not getting above freezing anymore.
They stay in the garage till the daytime temps are consistently above freezing in the Spring.

Because my plants grow outside, they eat whenever they catch there own bugs.
I only ever fed my plants when I made a video of them eating.

Looked for the video...holy cow, 13 years ago. LOL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

Here is my grow guide:

How to grow & care for Venus Flytraps
By Tommy R.

Flytraps are not houseplants. They are perennials and have needs that must be met or they will weaken and eventually die if grown indoors. They MAY last about 4 years indoors but will weaken each year. Forget terrariums. 99% of the time when someone is having a problem with their flytrap on the forums they are growing it indoors. There are a few people who say they can be grown indoors under bright enough lights and regular feedings. Feel free to try it. Good luck. See this document: https://www.flytrapcare.com/ph...

Grow them in FULL ALL DAY SUN OUTDOORS. This means at least 6 hours or more a day. The more the better. If your plant is new acclimate it slowly to full all day Sunlight OUTDOORS. Look up (Google) "Hardening off". Sit it in a shallow tray of rain water, distilled water or reverse osmosis water ONLY during the growing season. NO TAP WATER unless the TDS reading is below 50ppm. TDS meters are cheap and can be found on Amazon or eBay. You could use up to 100 ppm water but if you do use it that high you need to repot every year according to California Carnivores.. The solids build up over the course of the year. In cases of extreme heat in summer, let's say over 100 F. provide some shade or use shade cloth during the hottest time of the day and make sure they're sitting in a shallow tray of water.

There is NO NEED to remove insects from the traps. Leave them. Attempting to remove them will just set off the traps and weaken the plant. It takes energy for the plant to set a trap off, setting it off without a reward is bad for the plant.

In the fall when night time temperatures approach freezing they are going into their dormancy period. THEY MUST have 3-4 months of winter dormancy. Drain off excess water from their pots and place somewhere where the temps. can be maintained between around 33F and 45F for the next 3-4 months. 3 months minimum. Keep them moist only, not waterlogged. Keep them from freezing solid. They can take a brief freeze but not repeated freeze/thaws.

They HAVE to have winter dormancy despite what some people say to the contrary. Listen to what California Carnivores says about it: https://youtu.be/HofnbF5Nr8A?t...

For VFTs I do fridge dormancy. What I do is I drain off excess water from the pots, hit them with a sulfur based fungicide and place in zip lock bags and pop them in the fridge for 3 - 3 1/2 months. I occasionally check them (once a month) for fungus and hit with a SULFUR based fungicide if needed. Late winter around February 1st I take them out hit them with SULFUR based fungicide again, clean them up (removing all the dead traps) re-pot and place under "Daylight" rated florescent or LED lights until night time temps. regularly stay above freezing then slowly acclimate them to full outdoor Sun. I've been using this method for 15 years with no losses.

These plants multiply and will fill their pot in a year or 2. Repot every 1-2 years in late winter/early spring in a 50/50 mix of peat moss and perlite. This is the standard CP mix. You could also substitute silica sand for the perlite. DO NOT USE any peat moss or perlite that contain added fertilizers or other additives, these will kill the plants! The plant gets it's fertilizer from insects. There is no need to feed them. Use plastic pots, do not use Terra cotta pots (unless they are completely glazed inside and on the bottom) as it leaches minerals into the soil which is BAD for the plants.

You can repot during the growing season IF you really have to (emergencies) but it will set the plant back a few weeks (transplant shock) and is typically not a good idea.
100% Long Fiber Sphagnum moss is also fine to use as soil, some people prefer it and add some perlite to it. I prefer peat/perlite as it's easier to remove during re-potting. It basically just falls off the roots. With LFSM you have to untangle it from the roots very carefully and you risk damaging them. It's a real pain in the butt quite frankly.

Repotting Venus flytraps (from a pro!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

In spring they will send up a tall flower stalk. Healthy plants can be allowed to flower if you want seeds. Seeds will be shiny black and tear shaped when ready to harvest. If your plant is sickly looking or very small or you don't want seeds cut the stalk as soon as you notice it starting to grow in early spring. Avoid buying seeds from Asia, they are often NOT flytrap seeds. Buy from a reputable CP dealer.

Seeds do not come true to their parent. Example: If the seeds are from DCXL they will not produce DCXL plants. If you harvest them you can sow them right away. If you want to wait until next year to start them they will need stratification. Which means they need about 6-7 weeks of cold treatment.

Remember, Flytraps are not pets or toys. There is no need what so ever to fawn and fuss over them. Just acclimate them and keep them in full all day Sun and make sure they have water and leave them alone! Trap imperfections happen, IT'S NORMAL. Holes in traps happen, IT'S NORMAL. Traps half closed happen, IT'S NORMAL. Just leave them alone to do their thing. They know what they're doing.
Feel free to copy and save this guide.


Updated: 9/3/2022

Thank you all for help!

I still have one question. Winters here do get to freezing some days. Would it be ok to leave my plant outside in my garage until spring when it's above freezing consistently? I would periodically check to make sure soil doesn't dry out. There are some days back to back I don't open my garage, is the plant ok in a few days of total darkness?

Once winter ends I'd just keep the plant outside the rest of the year.

keithp2012 said: ... is the plant ok in a few days of total darkness?

The light does not stay on inside the refrigerator. Sorry, couldn't resist. After the leaves are gone, there's no reason to leave the lights on.

Thanks

keithp2012 said: Thank you all for help!

I still have one question. Winters here do get to freezing some days. Would it be ok to leave my plant outside in my garage until spring when it's above freezing consistently? I would periodically check to make sure soil doesn't dry out. There are some days back to back I don't open my garage, is the plant ok in a few days of total darkness?

Once winter ends I'd just keep the plant outside the rest of the year.

They do not need light when dormant. I have been doing fridge dormancy for going on 16 years now. Here's what I do:

What I do is I drain off excess water from the pots, hit them with a sulfur based fungicide and place in zip lock bags and pop them in the fridge for 3 - 3 1/2 months. I occasionally check them (once a month) for fungus and hit with a SULFUR based fungicide if needed. Late winter around February 1st I take them out hit them with SULFUR based fungicide again, clean them up (removing all the dead traps) re-pot and place under "Daylight" rated florescent or LED lights until night time temps. regularly stay above freezing then slowly acclimate them to full outdoor Sun. I've been using this method for going on 16 years with no losses.

@TommyRan Thank you!