How do I get my Venus fly trap to eat? 🪴

[Chloefairydust]

Random question … How do you look after a Venus fly trap plant?

I can’t seem to get mine to eat. I read they can eat fish food, so I tried feeding mine a fish flake and it closed the trap around the food however the next day the traps open again and it hasn’t eaten the food. Does it not like the food?? What should I feed it? And how often?

Any advice appreciated 🙂

Feed me. Feed me NOW.

Sorry, not helpful.

🤣

Must be fresh
must be blood

FEED ME SEYMOUR!!

Sorry OP, I don't know the answer. Seasonal? Not hungry.

You don’t need to feed them, they photosynthesise too. The traps will only snap shut if a certain number of hairs are triggered at the same time, can’t remember the exact details but you can google. Don’t feed, it can cause the traps to rot. Also don’t trigger the traps for fun, it takes too much energy out of the plant. Just place on a windowsill in eg kitchen. They want a lot of light.
Water ONLY with rainwater. Tap water is a killer. Lots of info online if you google.

How do I know if it’s hungry though?? 🤣

Im the worst plant mum in the world aren’t I? 😁

Thank you! … That’s good then, I was worried I was going to kill my plant 😁

All jokes aside, it might not need food, or only need it at particular times.

We feed ours flies It's why we got it, I felt guilty killing all the flies that came into our house. Now I let DS swat them and feed them to the fly trap.

I sometimes feed mine flies too - and he catches his own plus the occasional spider. I believe it's normal for the traps to go black and fall off after feeding sometimes - they get replaced with a new trap.

If filtered water OK? That's what he's had so far but we've only had him 6 months.

I use distilled water to feed mine. They are not as easy to keep as I thought. I do feed flies to but maybe shouldn't? Their traps do do black and I was unsure if they were to warm!
I also have a pitcher plant and air plants so much easier.

I just keep mine with a swamp of deionised water. She seems happy. In summer she eats a load of flies. In winter she doesn't. Mine needs her first repot this year and I'm a bit scared of breaking her.

I love how these plants have pronouns 😂

@Scrubadub I love the way you refer to your plant as “he “ 🤣 too funny

I feed my Siobhan and Keren filtered water and they are alive (albeit not exactly thriving). Moss over the compost is something I read that they like.

How on earth do you catch the flies to feed them?😮

I don’t have any flies in the house so might have to go out into the garden to catch some, the neighbours will think I’m a loon 🤣

Don’t feed it, not even swatted flies. You have to trigger 2 of the hairs to get it to close but it’s the wriggling of the fly that encourages it to release the digestive juices. I used to put mine out in the garden in the summer and it would catch its own

Just read the mat the trap closes when it senses movement… does this mean the fly has to be alive?

Filtered water isn’t ok. It must be rain water or water from the tumble dryer condenser. You can actually buy distilled water online if you don’t have any.

I feed mine flies that I’ve half killed. They have to still be wriggling. Sometimes feed her grubs out the lawn or woodlice.

I also have sundew plants which catch fruit flies or fungus gnats. They’re amazing and get rid of all the tiny flies that float in front of your face.

They all have to go into dormancy soon for the winter. So will need to be somewhere cold for a few months.

Yes, flies have to be wriggling. There is a way you can feed it dead flies by pressing the outside of the trap gently after you’ve fed it. This stimulates the hairs inside and make it thinks the fly is still wriggling. There’s a YouTube video about it

Leave a rotting tomato or banana skin on the windowsill next to the plant. It will attract fruit flies, and some of them will no doubt end up being trapped.

I water mine with fish tank water, it’s been dechlorinated is that ok?

All my house plants seem to thrive on it, I hope it’s ok for the fly trap… 🤔

My brother has a huge Venus fly trap that normally lives on his window sill in a damp tray like his own little window swamp. A couple of weeks ago I went round to his and he’d put it in the garden for some fresh air and it had been gorging itself on daddy long legses. There were legs and wings sticking out of its traps all over the plant. If it’s not too cold round your way you could maybe give it a couple of hours outside and it can help itself. Looks pretty grim though 😬

I've got one but it's only tiny and looking a bit lacklustre. Lots of good tips on here!

What did I just read!!!!! Hahahahah! My son's does not gorge, unfortunately for him, because he is a little spider-phobic.

Mines tiny too, I can’t wait to see it grow into a big fly trap though, they are such interesting plants 🙂

I might try putting it outside for an hour to see if it catches anything…

How often do they need need to eat bugs?