Inherited a Venus Flytrap. Help!

[Ottercave]

Just as the title says. I’ve become the owner of a Venus Flytrap.
I’ve sat her in a saucer of de-ionised water.
I’ve taken off any black traps.
Do I need to cut off the flower stalks?
Other than name her what else do I need to do?

@MereDintofPandiculation Don’t worry. I took it as it was intended.

Thank you everybody for your help but there are further questions. 😁

1 - How do you collect rainwater and store it? We don’t have a water butt.

2 - How do I know if it’s ready to or has come out of dormancy?

3 - Why has one of the traps started turning black?

Love how so many people either have one or are looking to get one. Think my family are fed up of me talking about Vera already. 😂

Ooh forgot to say I cut the flower stalks off. Hope that didn’t upset her. 😅

1. You need a water butt. A friend just leaves out a large receptacle to catch rain in, which is fine through the rainy months, but won’t work in summer.

2. It will just start growing

3. Traps can only close twice, then they die, turn black, and the plant will replace them with a new trap. If the traps have caught insects, they are ‘in credit’, but if they’ve closed due to wind, being knocked, something inanimate falling in them etc etc then the plant has used more energy making the leaf than it has generated, and will be weakened. This is why you should never artificially close a trap deliberately. Especially not with a young plant. If they’re in rude health and have loads of leaves, then it’s not so much of a problem.

Shamelessly marking as I've been considering one to catch the flies that appear in my living room every summer, especially since the spiders that wer allowed to take up residence on the understanding they would eat the damn flies haven't kept up their side of the tenancy agreement 😉😀

How do you collect rainwater and store it? We don’t have a water butt. You can collect a little by leaving receptacles in the garden, especially if you frequently empty them into a larger storage container, and if you've just got the one VFT that might be enough. You can get away with tap water if you're in a soft water region - do you get limescale in your kettle or toilet? If you never have to descale, you may be in a soft water area.

Same 🤣

Mines still alive just!

No chance of a water butt so looks like it’s receptacles in the garden and hope for the best.
Definitely get limescale in the toilet and kettle so tap water is out.
She’s stood in de-ionised water at the moment. Is that ok for her if I don’t have any rainwater?
Not too sure if the trap has been triggered by anything. I do know that some of the traps are growing inside of other traps. Will this harm Vera in any way?

Forgot to ask. Do just leave the black trap to totally die or do I need to cut it off at any point?

I can honestly say I’m asking far more questions about this plant than I ever have about my cat. 😂

I bought a water butt with a stand and a tap. Unfortunately it didn't fit under the downpipes where I wanted it to go.

It collects rainwater anyway during the winter through the holes in the top, and because it has a lid it isn't full of rubbish like the open butt I was replacing, it is fairly clean. I use it for the houseplant orchids.

I’ve never used it but de-ionised water should be fine.

Cut off the black leaves close to the base of the plant. If you wait till they’ve gone completely black, you can just (gently) pull them off, which is quite satisfying and doesn’t leave any stalk remains behind.

@VenusClapTrap are they OK on a south facing window indoors (assuming they stay moist) or is that too much for them?

@LadyGardenersQuestionTime that would be fine. They like plenty of light!

They grow where it’s too low nutrient for anything else to grow (which is why they have to eat flies instead), so they are used to having nothing overhanging them

So Vera seems to be doing well. She’s just starting to grow more flower shoots and the inside of her traps are turning a lovely red colour.
She’s positioned on a south facing window in a conservatory but we don’t get many flies in there. Is it best to leave her there or move her to the kitchen which is north facing and doesn’t have much natural light but does get flies?

Buy another one then you can have one on each windowsill 😃

Either location is fine.

I have ordered a Venus fly trap along with a pitcher plant and sundew.

Excitedly waiting for them to be delivered 🥳

Can they go outside, and if so when?

They can, wait till the danger of frosts is over

Thanks to @VenusClapTrap Agnes has to come to live with us as well. 😂
Neither have caught any flies yet though.
I’ve started putting them outside for a little bit when the sun is shining to see if they can catch any out there.

Hurrah! 🎉

Don't do what I did- I kept feeling them bits to see if they'd close and this wasted their energy and they died. Didn't catch a fly, but it liked closing around pencils!

Now I know why the one DH bought before Xmas and then abandoned to my care is 'wonky'.
How cold is ok for them in winter please? Would a growhouse ( large cold frame) be ok?

@ErrolTheDragon A cold greenhouse is fine. It got so cold in mine this year that I lost a lot of geraniums, but the flytraps all came back in spring completely unscathed.

Thanks!

I am still waiting for mine to grow. The Pitcher Plant is a lot taller and one of its pitchers is starting to open, but the Venus Fly Trap has lost 3 traps.

The weather hasn't been good for indoor flies so far.