Carnivorous Plants 



Just In Time For Halloween 



David Lane 



What comes to mind when you think of Hallow- 

 een? Pumpkins carved into frightening faces, 

 witches, ghosts, and trick-or-treat? Some or ail 

 of these may scare young children, and even a few 

 adults, at one time or another around Halloween. In the 

 plant world, few things are more scary sounding than 

 carnivorous plants. While man-eating plants like Audrey 

 in The Little Skop of Horrors movies are fiction, carnivorous 

 plants are very real, with over 500 species known world- 

 wide! Names like Cobra Lily, Monkey Cup, Huntsman's 

 Horn, Sun Pitcher, and Bladderwort would strike fear in 

 the heart of any small animal. This article is intended to 

 introduce you to these fearsome plants (which are often 

 quite attractive) and to direct you to sources of more in- 

 formation. The popularity of carnivorous plants is likely 

 to grow as knowledge of these plants spreads and large- 

 scale propagation, particularly by tissue culture, begins 

 to produce a ready supply of material. 



Undoubtedly, the most well-known carnivorous plant 

 is the Venus Fly Trap ("VFT," as enthusiasts call them) 

 or Dionaea muscipula. Darwin referred to it as the most 

 amazing plant in the world. The species is as diabolical 

 as any evil spirit, luring its insect and spider prey with 

 the red color on the inside lobes of the bear trap-like 

 leaves. It is thought that this unusual diet provides ni- 

 trogen to the plant. The traps will snap shut only if one 

 of the three trigger hairs on each lobe is touched twice 

 or if two different hairs are touched in rapid succession. 

 The mechanism of closing has fascinated many scientists 

 including Wayne Fagerberg and his students in the Plant 

 Biology Department at UNH. Few people know that 

 VFTs grow naturally only in eastern boggy areas of North 

 and South Carolina. 



Kids of all ages have also been fascinated by VFTs. 

 Unfortunately, almost as many VFTs have been killed as 

 have been sold, often within a year of purchase. In fact, 

 many carnivorous plant enthusiasts ("CPers") started out 

 by killing their first VFT. To cut down on this unholy car- 

 nage, I have included a side bar written by the presi- 

 dent of the International Carnivorous Plant Society 

 (ICPS) on the best way to care for these plants. Few 

 people know that in recent years a number of strange, 



probably mutant, forms of VFTs, with bizarre variations 

 in color and in teeth size and arrangement, have been 

 discovered . In late July of this year, the Atlanta Botani- 

 cal Garden released an all-red form of VFT called "Akai 

 Ryu" or "Red Dragon," in which the entire plant be- 

 comes burgundy-colored in sufficient light. Propagation 

 for commercial release of this cultivar is being handled 

 by Agristarts III of Apoka, Florida. The development and 

 distribution of this form was made possible by tissue 

 culture. The first published method of VFT tissue culture 

 was developed by Subhash Minocha of the UNH Plant 

 Biology Department. 



Watch your step! There are carnivorous plants growing 

 right here in New Hampshire. In New Hampshire bogs, it 

 isn't difficult to find our local pitcher plant, Sarracenia 

 purpurea. This hardy species, which is also the provincial 

 flower of Newfoundland, produces large, tubular, water- 

 filled leaves that trap insects with downward-pointing 

 hairs on the inside of the leaves. Our local sundews, two 

 species of Drosera, trap insects with glue-tipped ten- 

 tacles which slowly pull their hapless victims to the sur- 

 face of the leaf where special glands secrete digestive 

 enzymes. Sundews are often found locally in bogs, 



MY VENUS FLY TRAP IS DYING! 



What am I doing wrong? 



Here's the quick summary of a few possibilities: 



1. It may be that the plant wants to enter dormancy. 

 Let it go dormant. (Keep drier and cooler.) It'll 

 come back in spring. 



2. The pot may be too small and the roots are rotting. 

 Repot in 4" or 6" pot in sphagnum peat moss. 



3. Not enough light. Venus fly traps need nearly full 

 sun. Don't grow them in a dark room. They are not 

 "jungle" plants. 



4. Too much teasing. Don't fool the traps. 



5. Plant has been fertilized. This is deadly. Immedi- 

 ately repot in new soil mix. 



6. Aphid infestation. Treat with Diazinon, Rotenone, 

 or submerge plant underwater for a day or two. 



OCTOBER'^NOVEMBER 1996 



25 



