Venus fly trap help!

[lainey lou]

My Eldest recently purchased a venus fly trap. As instructed we've watered it (from underneath) with rain water, put it on a sunny windowsill and fed it a woodlouse (much to my youngest daughters horror!).
Anyhow, the "trap" that we fed the woodlouse to, (one week ago) has now gone all black and isn't looking too good.
Any thoughts/ ideas appreciated!! Ta!

[Edilith]

It sounds like it's getting enough light so it isn't that.. perhaps the woodlouse was a bit too large for the trap you fed it to? I've heard that traps can sometimes have problems if they're not able to fully close once they've caught something.

All in all though I find they bounce back well, so as long as there's enough water/light and there are signs of new traps growing I wouldn't worry.

[tiachica]

I thought once closed the traps don't reopen but instead grow new ones? That's what happened with mine.

[Edilith]

Strange, I've never heard of traps dying off once shut - mine have always reopened a few days after

[Bramble_killer]

not enough light and probably the woodlice was too big it started rotting without being digested properly and is now making that trap sick.

[Capsid]

The traps do go black eventually, perhaps the rather large prey accelerated this. I'd let them catch their own flies really, they probably only need one a year.

Sarraceniac is the expert on insectivorous plants, I expect he can contribute some useful information.

ETA: I see bramble killer makes the same assumption.

[lainey lou]

Thanks for all your replies!

[chris]

D'ya think the traps can eat slugs?

[kalimna]

More to the point, can they be trained to munch through couch grass and chickweed???

On a serious, but related note, I read somewhere (on here I think) of people using pitcher plants as 'insect population management' within greenhouses. I wonder if venus traps would also work, or whether it would be too tricky to maintain the dampness required?

Adam

[enrich100]

don't ask me after 30+ years of wanting a fly trap and buying 3, 1 for each of my children I have finally managed to kill all 3 off in less than a year

[Edilith]

On a serious, but related note, I read somewhere (on here I think) of people using pitcher plants as 'insect population management' within greenhouses. I wonder if venus traps would also work, or whether it would be too tricky to maintain the dampness required?

We have three carnivorous plants in our greenhouse (venus fly trap, sundew and something similar to a pitcher but without the 'lid'). They're placed in a deep saucer of water each which we top up, and they seem happy and healthy enough.. what they don't catch, our eight-legged friends in the corners will handle