Sundews are a very unique type of carnivorous plant. They have 'tenticles' on their variable shaped leaves which many different varieties of insect. Sticky nectar which is found on the tenticles smells very sweet and glistenes in the suns light. Many unfortunate flies fall victim to this trap and suffer a slow death.Once the fly is stuck to the sticky secretion, it will take a few hours for the plant to constrict it and let out the digestive enzymes found in the tenticles.
Sundews produce flowers in the Spring and Summer which vary between white, pink or yellow. If pollinated correctly, they produce a great deal of seed.
The average temperature that sundews like to be kept is between 70 F - 90 F, but it may vary depending on the type of sundew you keep.
Out of over 130 sundews in the species I have found that the D.Aliciae and the D.Capensis are very hardy plants, but some tropical sundews are extremely hard to keep.
Sundews have no specific humidity requirements, except for the tropical varities. Although this is strictly true, my D.Capensis and D.Aliciae have grown tremendously & produced a large amount of dew when grown in a higher humidity. To see these plants click here and here.
Sundews should be stood in about 1 inch rain water from April to November, and kept damp the remainder of the year. Some sundews require a resting period in the winter where they need to be fully dryed out. Sundews enjoy the sunlight very much so they do make very good window-sill plants. They mostly grow in Sphagnum moss peat, but sand may be added.
Place a live fly on the dew of the plant to feed it. As the fly moves, this stimulates the curling of the leaf and the letting out of digestive enzymes. |
