A carnivorous plant is an extremely interesting and fascinating creature, they owe this to their unique ability to digest insects. Over years and years of evolution, this unique plant group has created their own trap for each species. This purely to survive in their own environment. This, by the way, is an environment consisting of nutrient-poor soil
Carnivorous plants, despite living on nutrient-poor soil, have found a way to survive. They do this through their traps and their prey, namely insects. They catch these insects in their traps and digest them slowly. This is because they slowly extract their necessary nutrients from the insect to survive and also grow. You might quickly wonder how to take care of such a complex creature, or perhaps even which of these plants is easiest to grow. We know by now that it is a big challenge to grow a carnivorous plant, yet taking care of a carnivorous plant is incredibly easy in relative terms. Together, let's take a closer look at which carnivorous plant is the easiest to grow.
What makes a carnivorous plant easy to grow?
Before looking at specific species, we are going to find out what actually makes a carnivorous plant easy to grow. We came up with the following points:
- Virtually no specific light requirements: The carnivorous plant is able to grow in a wide spectrum of light conditions. Think from indirect sunlight to partial shade, for example.
- No complex water requirements: The carnivorous plant does not have a difficult schedule as far as watering is concerned, but can thus cope with, for example, light drought and possible watering down
- Nutritional requirements: Although we generally advise against it, the carnivorous plant in question does not need additional fertilisation.
- Pest and disease resistance: The plant is naturally resistant to many common pests and diseases.
With these points in mind, let's take a look at the carnivorous plant known to be easy to care for.
The Venus flycatcher tops the list
The Venus flycatcher (Dionaea muscipula) is by far the most famous carnivorous plant and is known for its iconic clap traps. The Venus flytrap is incredibly easy to care for. This makes a venus flytrap the ideal choice for the beginner in the carnivorous plant world.
Lighting requirements
If you want to provide your Venus flytrap with ideal conditions, choose indirect sunlight. If you don't have this available much, you can also choose to put your carnivorous plant under artificial light. This plant species also does extremely well under artificial light. So you can easily create a space for your Venus flytrap.
Water needs
The Venus flytrap needs regular watering. This is because these plants are adapted to grow in moist poor soil. The following actually applies to all carnivorous plants, namely the use of distilled water or rainwater. This is recommended at all times because tap water can contain minerals that are harmful to all carnivorous plants.
Nutrition
A Venus flytrap, like any other carnivorous plant, gets their nutrients from the insects it catches. It is therefore not necessary to provide your carnivorous plant with extra nutrition. In fact, it may do your plant far more harm than good.
Strong against pests and diseases
As a rule, a Venus flytrap is highly resistant to pests and diseases. You can only strengthen this if you keep your plant under the right care conditions. Make sure you keep an eye on the humidity and moisture in the soil at all times, that way you will prevent mould or rot.
Some additional care tips for the venus flytrap
We would like to give you some extra care tips to make your venus flytrap as happy as possible:
- Provide adequate light: This is generally a place where the carnivorous plant receives at least 4 to 6 hours of sunlight a day. Note: Preferably go for the morning sun.
- Keep the soil moist: For optimum regulation, use a saucer under the pot. Not only do you catch water with this, but you also give the carnivorous plant the opportunity to absorb moisture on its own.
- Do not feed your carnivorous plant: Avoid overfeeding in all cases. Do not give your carnivorous plant artificial fertiliser and certainly not human food. This can damage your carnivorous plant tremendously. It is enough if your carnivorous plant catches one or two insects a month.
- Winter care: The venus flytrap, like many other plants, goes into a kind of hibernation in winter. Move your venus flytrap to a slightly cooler space and reduce watering considerably.
Conclusion
For beginners but also for carnivorous plant lovers looking for a species that is easy to care for, the Venus flytrap is an excellent choice. Among carnivorous plants, it has the least light, water and nutritional requirements. In addition, the venus flytrap has good natural resistance to any diseases. We at Carnivory.eu can easily respond to this thanks to our wide range of venus flytraps. Feel free to take a look and go for your favourite species.