help save our venus fly trap

[MothButterfly]

My son's venus fly trap is looking very sorry for itself. Any idea what we're doing wrong and if it can be saved?

Looks either very over or under watered

Or a cat sat on it

Thanks, I'll try watering it less

Use either filtered or rain water. They dislike tap water. (They like lots of water BTW. )

I'll also try rain water. Thank you

It looks salvageable provided you act quickly - there's still lots of green growth on there. Venus fly trap are that awkward combination of liking moisture but not standing in water - they are swamp plants. Definitely cut away all the dead leaves, being careful not the damage the living stuff, and you could think about repotting it if the soil has been very dry or very waterlogged - but you need a specialist mix as they don't like being fed/fertilized.

Cheers, it had definitely been waterlogged as my husband was sure that was what he did to his when he was a child. I've not watered it since original post and took off the dead stuff. It's still damp

It can take ages for things to dry out! One thing to remember is that we think of plants exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide at their leaves, but there are also oxygen exchange processes at the roots that affect both gas and nutrient exchange with the soil and oxygen transportation around the plant. A waterlogged plant is a plant in a state of crisis - loads and loads of the processes it needs to get food and exchange gases are going wrong! Furthermore, bad waterlogging can really ruin the whole texture and microbial balance of the soil, which can be why it's worthwhile repotting and starting with a fresh mix.

(Unlike the fly trap, plants that grow in wet conditions tend to have special adaptations that help them to cope).