I appreacate your opinion

[Mondo]

I'm tossing up weather to purchase one of those small vft's from Big W and keep it in the dorm. But i was a bit worried by the fact that i can only give it about four hours of direct after noon sun a day,and it's so hot here the thing might rot! I could put a pice of white paper up to the window i guess but i doubt that would stop the heat-and you can't buy a small 30cm by 30cm square of shade cloth....You see there's a window in the dorms main room that gets four hours of direct afternoon sun and i was thinking of putting it behind there-i suppose i could find a nice spot outside to put it but for fear of it being stolen i must keep it inside. My other worry is other kids poking around with it and killing it.....
Either purchase a vft or i could get some D.capensis seeds and grow like two from seed and keep them in a small pot in the dorm-the only problem is the four hours of direct sunlight-but being hardy plants i'm sure the capensis will survive. The other problem both things face if i do do any is the fact that i will have to take the plants and their distilled water down to brisbane on a bus for the x-mas and september holidays,would the air conditioning on the 7 hour bus trip affect them?...but i doubt that would pose too much of a problem. Also i was wondering seeming that my parents like to take us down to the beach that if i took my plants with me,if i got them,would the salt air at the beach affect them or would putting them inside behind a window protect them from the salt in the air...it's just we spend about a week down at the beach,in a unit right on it....*sigh*it's just so difficult for me to keep plants the way i live...in two years i'll be outta high school but no one can go thinking about carnivorous plants for two years and pass their subjects....thank you for reading this and your opinion on any thing of this matter is much appreaciated. Thanks in advance

 

[Dr Green]

Instead, of banging your head against the wall, why don't you go ahead and buy a PC?

I'm pretty much in the same situation as you, seeing as I keep moving around for my studies. But instead of waiting to settle down to buy some CPs, I decided I would get some now. I have just two, I'm doing the best I can to take care of them in the conditions I live in, and we'll see if they hold out. I can live with the fact that they won't be as healthy and good looking as plants in a perfect growing environment, but hey, that'll come in it's time.

So my suggestion is, if you want a CP, get one just not 50. Try some which are forgiving like my Nepenthes Alata or common VFT. Even if it doesn't grow like a terrarium growm plant, you'll get lots of enjoyment out of it. And you'll learn a bunch of stuff which you'll be able to apply when you start a real collection when you settle down.

 

[Mondo]

Hmmm...thankyou for the advice Dr Green it made me think.I think i'm just gonna purchase one of those little flytraps they sell at big W for like five dollars-i really like them cause they are small and convineant and have like 15-20 traps on them. I always liked the common variety of the flytrap as opposed to it's mutations anyway. Thanks for the reply-it's good to know there's some one else out there living like me.

 

[RamPuppy]

Mondo,

I am actually thinking that a Nepenthes, even a cheapie, would be better suited to your environment, shade most of the day, hight temps, all things lowlanders are used too... You don't need to worry about a tray, they have thicker, waxier leaves than flytraps or sundews, and will probably take the bus ride better, and if the afternoon sun is too intense, a lot easier to pick up a pot and move.

Flytraps are great, but they are delicate and light hungering little buggers... I would ty a nepenthes... (MHO)


OK, for you bus ride, my plants are all mail order, and have survived DAYS in transit, so why not box your CP's for their ride? Get yourself a small box, and maybe a block of styro-foam, cut the foam so the pot sits inside with zero 'play' meaning it can't move around much... you may wand to put the bottom of the pot in a plastic bag so that it does not drip onto the bottom and get it wet...

bag the top if you think it neccessary, you can even throw in some damp paper towels around the edges to keep the humidity up inside. Mark the top so you don't go turning the box upside down, and have fun transporting it.

If you do get a flytrap, I don't know how 'salt air' is going to effect it... if your not getting salt build up on the furniture and what not, then It will probably be fine.. just keep it indoors where it can get light, OR, you can follow the time honored tradition of leaving it at home, with water up to it's brim... flytraps don't like to be submerged for long, but christmas is in the dead of summer for you right? So if leave it in a place it can get some light and be happy, and then fill up the tray with a little more water than usual, gauge it, and use just enough to keep it wet until you get back...

Remember though, there are pretty much no CP's that like to be moved around a lot, you will need to find as 'similar' conditions as you can wherever you take your plant.

(SUBLIMINAL MESSAGE) Get a Nepenthes, it will do better!(END SUBLIMINAL MESSAGE)

 

[Dionaea Enthusiast]

Mondo, I'm sure the beach is fine--I live on the beach(Massachusetts coast)! Actually, I do get some salt build up on my furniture and what-not, and my cp are thriving. Just watch out for the usual dangers of a beach, i.e. high winds and tourists!
Chris

 

[Mondo]

Just purchased a nice little flytrap from Big W. I potted it in Brunnings peat moss,the baged stuff. It's in a pot about 15cm tall and about 13cm wide in a 2cm deep dish. I sit it inside behind a window where it gets about 4 hours of direct sunlight-it gets sunlight from around 12pm to 5:30pm-this means it gets the hottest part of the sun right? Maybe it could get too hot-i was thinking about putting a little mirror at the base of the pot so it reflects sunlight away from the pot so only the top part gets sun for the plant. Anyway i saw it had some fungus on it's leaves and it's roots were comming out of the 6cm pot i got it in-they were sitting in water and one had algae on it! But it seems to be putting out a bit of new growth-i didn't check if it's rhyzome was crispy but i am sure it is as it's got a lot of new growth. Whoever grew it knew what they were doing cause it has three long flower stems that have been cut-one of these is black and rotting,another has a bit of fungus and the third seems to be ok. The fungus shouldn't affect the plant now that i am putting it in sunlight and a big pot right? Anyway the only real problem it has at the moment is the other kids in the dorm mucking around with it in some way...i would hate to lose it to a bunch of ignorant idiots!

 

[RamPuppy]

Clip off anything with fungus that you can get... I suspect that fungicide is a bit hard for you to get ahold of, so I am betting that the traps new conditions, with light, and air movement, and lower humidity will end the fungus problem.