Facts About Venus Flytrap

Venus flytraps hold our fascination for being one amongst the small group of plants that is capable of rapid movement. A marvel of nature, the extraordinary method it uses to trap its prey seems to be nature's equivalent of sensor technology.

Venus flytrap is also known by the scientific name Dionaea muscipula. It is a small plant with four to seven leaves that grow from a short subterranean stem. The stems usually reach the maximum size of between 3 to 10 centimeters. When the plant matures, it may produce flowers on a single tall stalk far above the leaves. The traps are located at the tip of the leaves. They are made up of a pair of terminal lobes hinged at the midrib. The top of the lobes contain red anthocyanin pigments and three hair-like trichomes per lobe. The edges of the lobes are fringed by stiff hair-like protrusions, that form a mesh, preventing the prey from escaping when the lobes snap shut.

What is remarkable about the functioning of the venus flytrap is that a prey has to come in contact with two trigger hairs in succession or touch one hair twice, for the lobes to close in less than 0.1 seconds! This is to ensure that it does not waste energy in trapping a fallen leaf or get activated by a raindrop. This intelligent trap tightens and increases its pace of digestion if it senses the prey trying to escape. Digestion usually takes about 10 days. If the prey is very small and manages to escape, the trap will reopen within 12 hours. It is a rare occurrence for a trap to catch and digest more than 3 preys in its lifetime.

The venus flytrap grows in the wild only in North and South Carolina in the United States, specifically within a 100 mile radius of Wilmington, North Carolina. From here it has been transplanted and grown in locations all over the world. It grows well in marshy wetlands such as bogs and wet savannahs, which are almost devoid of nitrogen. This plant is an ode to adaptation, as it consumes insects as a source of nitrogen needed for protein formation, something the soil cannot provide.

Venus flytrap is a fairly popular potted plant as its curious appearance lends to its ornamental value. However, it is said to be difficult to grow, and often people only learn to care properly for a venus flytrap after killing a few of them. The key lies in replicating the plant's natural habitat as closely as possible. An indication of good health in most varieties of the venus flytrap is that the traps are bright red.

Here are some pointers for the successful cultivation of the venus flytrap:

• Water - Clear rain water is the ideal water to nourish this plant with. Alternately, distilled water is good too, because it does not contain any salts. These plants also benefit if the pH of the water is acidic. However, one does not have to be overtly careful as venus flytrap's can tolerate regular clean water. This plant must be watered regularly to keep the soil moist, for if the roots dry out, the plant will fall ill.


• Soil Mixture - A good peat moss which contains bark (which is good for drainage) will suffice. The venus flytrap should be fertilized very mildly. A little bit on one or two of the leaves is enough and will supply the plant with more than enough nitrogen.


• Dormancy - Venus Flytraps have a periodic winter dormancy period. They can tolerate temperatures in the forties but need to be kept away from frost. If the temperature is very low or high, take the plant out of the pot, cut the dried leaves and spread just a wee bit of fungicide on the plant. Then wrap the bulb in moist, dry, sphagnum moss, put it inside a plastic transparent bag, close it, and place it in the fridge. It can be placed back into a pot after dormancy.


• Sun - A greenhouse is the most conducive environment for a venus flytrap to flourish outside of its natural habitat. However, it grows well in pots on windowsills and decks, or any other place where it will receive 4 to 5 hours of sunlight.

Large populations of these plants have been uprooted from their home in the wild for sale. This practice has threatened the existence of the plant in its natural habitat. An opinion expressed strongly by most conservationist is that the only way to protect and preserve this species of plant is in managed preserves.