Question about humidity....

[Chicxulub]

Ok, I'm posting this here because it seems to be the most pertinant section of the site.

I'm a bit confused about humidity levels for my plants. I've read several different things, some seem to imply an enclosure for the plants, like a 2liter bottle with the top cut off placed upside down over the plant's pot and water tray, others say to leave the plant in it's water tray with no enclosure because that will cause fungus and other problems.

I figured I could ask here and get the truth. I have a very large VFT and a pair of immature cape sundews. How would I go about getting the best humidity sans a humidifier if I'm a window sill grower??

Rob

 

[schloaty]

Hi Rob - first, for the VFT, you don't need the cover. If it is currently covered, then you should "harden it off" to the ambient humidity levels (which means taking the top off each day for a longer period of time until it's off for good), otherwise, VFT's have no real need of high humidity levels.

The cape sundews, likewise, are fairly hardy with respect to humidity, but if you live in a cold-weather climate, your heating system will probably dry out your air too much. The capes tend to get cranky if the humidity gets much below 35%. In this case, you could certainly dome them. However, make sure it's not sealed completely. There should still be some airflow - this will help with preventing fungus. I would use the top of the two liter bottle, and maybe cut off the top section a little farther down to have a slightly larger openning on top.

 

[jimscott]

Humidity shouldn't be the focus for VFT's or Cape sundews. Adequate lighting and air circulation are far more important. Humidity is overrated and something the people associate with CP's, like swamps. A Cape sundew does very well sitting at a south or west window sill, with its pot in a plastic container of distilled water. VFT's do best when outside, in a well-drained pot.

 

[xvart]

Jimscott and schloaty pretty much nailed it on the head there. Most plants will do quite fine without a dome or a terrarium. I have both vft's and cape sundews and they do fine with just the water their pot stands in and the other water pots around them. If anything, as your collection grows just ask what kind of conditions the new plants were in before, and that will give you a good idea of what you should try to shoot for, at least initially.

A good question is are they grown inside or outside? For most plants you should harden them off as schloaty suggested and then see how they do in your standard growing area. If for some reason they are not doing well after a while (or not as well) then you might consider adding more trays around them or some other alternative that might be suggested here.

How long have you had the plants?

xvart.