Trees, Shrubs and Conifers: Conifers: What are you growing?, 0 by Equilibrium

Equilibrium wrote:
Ooops, missed these questions and these are right up my alley.

Yes, they get large enough to eat Japanese Beetles and I've even had a few trap tree frogs.

Yes, they bloom. Dainty white flowers that are quite understated yet attractive. Best to nip the flowers off the first few years until they establish.

I wouldn't necessarily refer to Dionaea as a hardy perennial as it won't make it in zone 4 or cooler even with protection. I would definitely say it can withstand our brutal weather conditions provisional upon some accommodations for our vicious freeze thaw cycles. Two ways to do this, a nice thick layer of white pine needles or polar fleece. I've used both, both appear to work equally well and can be peeled off mid March. I also forgot to protect them one year and they still came back.

Their size depends on many factors. Some cultivars are larger than others. Straight species and hybrids tend to perform better in zone 5 which lends credibility to the "hybrid vigor" adage. They're best planted in full sun. They must never be allowed to dry out. These are a wetland species for all practical purposes. I address their high moisture requirements by planting mine in bogs or rain gardens. Bogs are nothing more than fancy flower beds in which you have a mix of rinsed sand and Canadian sphagnum peat. You can sink anything in your ground to create a bog from an old bathtub, to a kiddie pool, to an epdm liner, to a stock tank, or even an animal feed trough which is what I used in the photo below. I divert gutters as well as the discharge from sump pumps to some areas where I have bogs.

I grow these plants not so much for myself but to pass out to kids. No better way to get kids hooked on the sciences than by giving them a plant that intrigues them that could in theory be planted near the base of one of their rain gutters outside year round. I enjoy these plants for a few reasons but mostly for their low maintenance. Truly, once you dig out an area for your bog/rain garden and fill it with the appropriate medium... you're done other than keeping them watered. Rain water is best. They don't need fertilizer. They co-evolved in nutrient deficient environments. These plants satiate their nutrient requirements by "digesting" insects, mites, and arachnids. Simply stated, their roots are very shallow and are basically there to ground them and uptake water. If you fertilize them, they will die.

If you two want to try a few, you might want to consider purchasing them from here- http://www.flytrapfarm.com/flytraps.html
Choose the straight species and call it a day. I found this place quite by accident. I was asked to speak and provide a demonstration for a "small" group of parents with differently abled kids this spring. I always provide medium, a pot, and a plant to each kid to pot up and take home. The group started out at a manageable size of around 12 which is what I normally deal with. Word spread and they ended up with over 50 families signing up. Talk about horror struck. That wiped me out of VFTs to the extent that I had to go buy more plants to be able to donate a plant to each kid for the hands on workshop next month as well as for the next two groups I am speaking to.

Here's a photo of a simple in ground bog that I just went out and snapped for you two. You truly don't need more than this to test out if growing these will be to your liking or not. For a little added height and interest, you could add a Sarracenia flava. They're tough plants too and have similar cultural requirements-