We are often asked how to store flytraps in the fridge during dormancy.
So here is what you do once they are entering dormancy or have went dormant.
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First I gather the flytraps, a five gallon bucket with a gallon of water in it, a plate with paper towel and scissors.
You need to bare root the flytraps by taking them out of the pots, dirt and all, and place them in the water. After a few seconds all the media will fall free. If you turn the pot upside down dirt and all will slide free.
Here I have the flytraps bare rooted, cleaned and ready to go. And the lfsm is damp and ready to use.
I like to remove dead growth as I go but you could do it all at once. The main thing is to get all of the black leaves off it as they are prone to rot. If only the trap is dead then cut it off leaving the green healthy leaf. This works for several plants or one or two. I like to wrap them in lfsm but damp paper towel will work as well. Just make sure things are only slightly damp, too wet and mold and rot will be a problem. Slightly damp is all.
First, I lay out a THIN layer of just barely damp lfsm. Spray it with some type of fungicide then lay out the flytraps.
Spray with fungicide again. You can fit numerous flytraps into a small area if needed. I am doing 17 in this batch.
Then cover with another THIN layer and treat again with the fungicide. Again, you can do the same thing with damp paper towel, moisten it with the fungicide and just treat the flytraps though.
Lay a piece of plastic over them. Hold the plastic and plate then flip over. I am using 1.5 mil plastic like you get in the paint department but plastic wrap will also work. As will a zip lock bag.
Then remove the plate
Wrap it up by folding the sides in and secure with tape. If your using plastic wrap you can probably skip the tape.
And complete by folding in the ends and secure with tape. Now just place in the fridge, I like to use the crisper but anywhere is fine. I placed this batch in a small box to remove crushing fears.
You can take them out after two months but I leave mine in till late March. They generally go in the first of December. Thats four months and they do fine.
And here is what you do once they are done with dormancy.
Well, its April 19th and I finally got around to taking them back out. They have been in the fridge a little longer than I intended, spending a whopping 5 months in there. Getting them back into media is fairly simple.
I like to gather everything I need before I get started. I use SuperThrive and forceps along with a dinner plate and bowl. Add 3 - 10 drops SuperThrive to the bowl and fill to a comfortable level. You just need the roots to touch the water for 10 or 15 minutes. I label everything so plant stakes are in order too. I prepared enough pots the day before. Thats the box I put them in to prevent crushing in the fridge during dormancy.
First I take the package out of the box. It has more condensation than I like, the lfsm should have been a little drier.
Once I get the plastic open everything looks good though.
With the top layer of lfsm removed I can see they did great.
You can click all the pics for larger pics. Sorry about the less than perfect flytrap pics, some are better than others.
Now you want to remove them, detangle if necessary, and soak the roots in SuperThrive, if you have it, for 10 or 15 minutes. As long as some of the roots are in contact with the water its fine.
Sometimes the flytraps will have leaves that are curled under, or down. Like the flytrap pictured here.
Just trim a few of the leaves down some. Always remove dead growth, but try to leave as much green growth as you can. You want to remove enough to allow you to get the bulb down in the media. Try to save all new growth if possible. You can use the top of the media to hold the leaves up as you push the bulb down into the media and secure with more media. So long as it doesn't lift itself out it will be fine, otherwise more trimming is needed.
This is that one planted. I removed enough leaves to allow me to set it at the appropriate depth. Otherwise the leaves just push it up and out of the media later. I held it down into position as I filled the hole and as I watered it in.
Always water your plants in well after planting to settle the media around the roots good. Use this method to ensure media is around the bulb well too. See below.
OK, heres the really important stuff when it comes to planting your Venus Flytraps.
Fill your pot with the media. Make a hole big enough and deep enough to hold the rhizome and roots of the plant you'll be inserting. I use my fingers for large ones and my forceps for small ones. I've found the smallest hole that accommodates everything is best, especially for flytraps. The media will help hold the leaves up when a couple press down farther than they should.
Insert the flytrap into the hole. I use the forceps to help get the roots down into the bottom of the hole. Be very careful not to damage the roots. You want to cover most of the white rhizome. Simply push some of the media into the hole and fill as needed to bring to top. DO NOT PACK THE SOIL DOWN INTO THE HOLE. It will damage the roots. Rather just dump some around and let it fall in. See the "trick" below.
I basically held the flytrap at the level I wanted it and pushed it up against the back wall of the hole. Then started filling the front. This is not quit filled enough yet but this pic with the next should show pretty well the depth your looking for. Again, DO NOT PACK THE SOIL DOWN INTO THE HOLE.
Now the media has been raised to the needed level and some high spots have been left. Now its ready for a good watering in. If you compare the big pictures of the this one and the one above it will help put the depth into perspective. It's hard to capture soil depth variances with the camera.
HERE IS THE TRICK. Leave some high spots in the media so you have some extra to play with. I often mound it up over the plant, then rinse it into place. Some settling will occur and the extra will help with that too.
If you have a spray bottle or pressurized spray bottle then use it. Set it for stream but be gentle. Use the stream to wash media around the rhizome. Then water the top good all over to settle the media around the roots and fill any voids. Add more media as needed.
I generally start off nice and easy using just enough water to wash the media around the plant. Once thats done increase flow to get standing water then stop, as the water settles down the media will too. Just play around with it and soon you will get pretty good. You just want to ensure everything has settled nicely around the plant.
If a couple of the leaves are down which results in trying to push the plant up then simply push it down to the desired depth when you fill the hole. Then hold it in position as you water it in. Once watered in and the water drains down it will stay in place, or you need to remove a couple pieces of leaf as above.
Folks, if you use this watering in trick you won't loose plants to shock. Just make sure to allow them to drain well before sitting them in water trays as they will be saturated. If you use the "dump soil and soak in water" method to bare root plants and the watering method to plant them your plants will be happy for years to come.
FLYTRAPS LIVE FOR OVER 30 YEARS! So treat yours well for a life long friend.
