Care for the Venus Flytrap - This is how the green huntress becomes really strong

She is small, but not without. After all, they even eat insects. We're talking about the Venus Flytrap. If you want to keep them, you have to pay attention to a few things.

The fascinating Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) belongs to the small group of carnivores (flesh eaters) in the plant kingdom and is arguably the most popular of all carnivorous plants. The catching mechanism of their leaves is one of the fastest movements in the plant kingdom. She doesn't care if flies, spiders or ants fall into her trap. The main thing is that she can supply her nutrient balance with the meat. While the Venus Flytrap takes good care of itself, the Green Slayer still needs some TLC.

This is what the correct location looks like

The Venus flytrap feels most comfortable in full sun. Opened, red-colored traps are a clear indication that the daily light output is sufficient for adult specimens. If the traps remain green and closed, the plant is probably not getting enough sunlight.

The humidity at the location should ideally be 55%. You can easily measure the values with a commercially available hygrometer, which is available for little money in gardening shops. If the humidity is well below 40%, this can be easily remedied: Wet the Venus flytrap daily with water from a spray bottle.

The right substrate

Lime-free, nutrient-poor and well-drained soil is best suited for Venus flytraps. You can buy a suitable substrate for carnivores, but you can also easily make it yourself. Simply mix two-thirds peat and one-third sand.

Casting Venus Flytrap

Water your Venus flytrap regularly as it thrives best in consistently moist soil. The exact water requirement can be determined by not putting the water on the substrate but in the lower pot. The amount is correct if the liquid is completely absorbed after half an hour.

Always use rainwater for watering instead of hard tap water. Venus flytraps come with calcium deposits in thempoorly coping with the floor. In addition, the whitish deposits look quite unsightly.

Feed Venus Flytrap

The Venus flytrap meets its nutritional needs by eating animal prey. Ants are on the menu, as are flies, spiders and woodlice. You don't have to provide the menu yourself, however, as the sweet-smelling nectar attracts suitable insects anyway.

If you want to initiate the fascinating spectacle of feeding yourself, you need live insects. Dead food may be trapped by the traps, but then quickly released again. The receptors on the trapping leaves react to the movement of the prey. In this article you will find out what you should consider when feeding your Venus flytrap.

Wintering Venus Flytrap

You can recognize the onset of hibernation of the Venus flytrap by the fact that it only develops very small trapping leaves, which no longer open and turn red. Now it is time to move the plant to its winter quarters. Venus flytraps are only moderately frost tolerant and are damaged at temperatures below 5°C. So choose a cool but frost-free and bright room as the location for the cold season. Important: Do not expose the Venus flytrap to cold drafts during the winter. Icy gusts of wind are almost as dangerous to the plant as frost.