Venus flytrap , sundews , ewer flora … All these are weird and exotic looking flora are several unlike types of carnivorous plants that exhaust insects – and sometimes even little mammals !
Insectivorous plant , commonly call carnivorous are a veridical oddity of Nature . Thus having one on your bookshelf will give you beauty , originality playfulness and … it will also eat those pestiferous louse too ! But how can you farm them?Carnivorous plants are adapted to living in position where the soil is poor in N , and this is why they eat bugs to absorb it . They most typically from alien places like Southeast Asia and South America , but some come also from moderate regions . Growing them , though , is not the same as other plants .
If you are wondering what works are related to the Venus fly trap , you will need a ocular description ( with a pic ) of some wired looking flesh eating plants , as you will need to match plant with similar pauperization .
So , just read on and find wide stove of dirt ball eating plants you could pick out from , and some along exculpated guideline so you do n’t end up “ kill your living dirt ball trap ! ”
But before you go and pick your darling , read the guidepost on how to rise them successfully .
Getting to Know Carnivorous Plants
As we said , carnivorous plants do n’t mature in your average forest or hayfield . They are extra industrial plant . In fact , they do n’t eat insects ( and mice etc . in some cases ) because they are gluttonous … No …
They do it because they grow where the soil is poor of N and P . This often means bogs , marshes , moors and similar types of environment . Some also turn in limestone rocky soils .
But because of their particular feeding habit , they have developed amazing shapes . Some have tentacle ; some have hurler ; others have long “ teeth ” and close when an insect walks on them … For a botanist , they are gravel wonders … For gardener ( professional and amateurs alike ) they are a unique chance to have “ something different ” in his or her collection .
And by the way … yes , carnivorous plants do have roots .
How To Grow and Care For Carnivorous Plants
I bet you have guessed already that because they are “ foreign ” , you could not expect to grow them like any other plant life … And you are right ! Many people finish up kill their bug eat on plant because they make even simple mistakes …
But they are not unmanageable to come for . Once you know the basics , they are relatively abject sustentation . And here are our good tips for growing carnivorous plants .
You see ? They are pocket-size changes you need to make , but if you get acidity , type of medium or watering wrong , you cease up risking your plant ’s life …
And now you roll in the hay how to grow them , you only need to pick out the one that ’s best for you , and maybe learn a more about it . So … here we go !
13 Types Of Carnivorous Plants That Eat Bugs
There are more than 750 species of carnivorous plants presently recognize , and Venus fly maw is the most popular carnivorous works with power to beguile and digest dirt ball and other little animals .
So , what are some plants like Venus tent flap trap?here are 13 uncouth and strange carnivorous plant life mixture that eat everything from bugs to pocket-size mammals :
1.Venus flytrap2.Albany pitcher plant3.Butterwort4.Tropical liana5.Waterwheel plant6.Brocchinia7.Sundews8.Corkscrew plant9.Cobra lily10.Trumpet pitcher plant11.Fly bush12.Bladderworts13.Pitcher plant
1. Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula)
Let ’s start with the most iconic and most popular carnivorous plant : Venus flytrap . This is really a small baleful mantrap … It only spring up to 6 inches wide ( 15 cm ) and the lying in wait that you often see in closeup are only 1.5 inches long ( 3.7 curium ) …
Still with those foreign smart red pads that look a bit like the roof of the mouth of a mouth , farseeing spikes that look like the teeth of some deep pee piranha Pisces the Fishes or horror film fauna … This bug feeder is an astonishing presence in terrariums and pots .
And there is more … It moves ! Few plants actually move , and Venus flytrap is arguably the most illustrious of them all …
When a fly or other insect walks onto the cakehole , this little works original of semitropical wetland on the East Coast of the USA spots the new invitee and … It closes the two domiciliation of the trap , make any attempt to run impossible .
In this , it is a playful plant life , if macabre peradventure . tyke have it away it and adult too can not fend the strange spectacle every time it catch up with a prey .
2. Albany Pitcher Plant (Cephalotus follicularis)
Another left face germ eating plant is Albany ewer plant , a.k.a . mocassin plant . This unknown admiration from Southeast Australia specialize in crawling insects , like ant , earwigs , centipedes etc .
So , it grow chubby pitchers very close to the ground . But it also makes them very “ climbing friendly ” … It has orotund ribs on the side with lots of thin “ fuzz ” , which creepy-crawly crawlies utilize as step ladders …
But they do n’t jazz where they are going … At the top of their upgrade there ’s aperistome(like a lip , a lip , a rounded edge ) with bantam ribs on it .
And these var. “ short course ” to the top … Where , unluckily for the little dirt ball , the peristome becomes slippy and there ’s a large pitcher shaped fix waiting for it .
Once it falls in , it ends up in a liquid state rich in enzymes and the industrial plant eat up it alive …
This works has beautiful colour , light green , copper color and purple , with a very waxy grain . But there is more … The lid on top of the pitcher has tumid ribs ( that can be green , copper or purpleness ) and in between “ windows ” … These are translucent parts of the plant .
Why ? This is to permit light into the hurler , because apart from eating hemipteran , it also photosynthesizes !
This is a beautiful industrial plant with heap of modeled value and strike colors , and the pitcher can be 8 inches marvellous ( 20 cm ) and about 4 in wide ( 10 cm ) . They will put on a great show in a smudge in full mass , like your employment desk , a mantle , a coffee bean board ..
3. Butterwort (Pingiucula spp.)
Did we say that some insect eating plant come from moderate regions too ? Here is one , butterwort , which hails from Europe , North America and North Asia . expect at it at first you may obnubilate it for an Alpine flower . Because it does have beautiful magenta to blue pansy like bloom …
But then you look at the leafage and you notice that something is strange … They are mucilaginous , like embrace with a stratum if glossy and sticky hairs . And there are dirt ball and little corpses stick to the large and fleshy leaves …
This is how it catches them . It fundamentally glues fiddling creatures to its foliage and then suck all the nutrients it ask from them .
This is a very good works for a beautiful terrarium . perhaps it ’s not as playful as a Venus flytrap or as modeled as a moccasin plant , but in the correct surroundings it does see enceinte . With some shiny glassful , lush , green and even alien familiar , this plant can look a bit like a strange “ alien ” or underwater plant .
The size depends on the metal money . The leaves can be as belittled as less than an inch ( 2 cm ) or as large as a whole understructure in duration ( 30 cm ) .
4. Tropical Liana (Triphyophyllum peltatum)
A very rare carnivorous plant , Tryphiophyllum peltatumis the only metal money in its genus . It comes from the tropical Western Africa ( Liberia , Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast ) . It does not look like most other dirt ball eating plant as well …
It has two character of leaves , unripened and glistening and in a way it may look like a palm or a decorative fern …
One set of leaves is lanceolate , and these leave insects alone … But then it turn another set . And these are recollective and slender – quite attractive and shiny to be good . But this solidification has gland on it that capture the picayune visitors …
While it would be a wonderful carnivorous plant to grow , there are two problems … It has staunch that can reach out 165 human foot tenacious ( 50 meters ) ! So , you require a park more than a garden to raise it .
Second , so far it is grown in some botanical gardens . Only three to be accurate : Abdijan , Bonn and Würzburg .
A fun fact … No one understood it was an insectivorous plant until 51 whole years after its discovery !
You are unlikely to produce it but in slip , a few tips may fare in handy , though we cognise little about caring for this plant .
5. Waterwheel Plant (Aldrovanda vesiculosa)
A less centre catching germ eating flora , waterwheel industrial plant still has its prayer … in a way , the name is very apt , because it look a bit like some of the water system plant you have in aquariums . It has a long , ropy super C stem with , at regular intervals , sketched matt leaves and gullible fuzz come off them . It may remind you ofEquisetum , to give you an idea .
But unlikeEquisetum , waterwheel plant uses those long and fragile green “ hairs ” to captivate lilliputian invertebrate that swim in the pee .
Yes , because this insectivorous flora is dissimilar from all others … It has no roots and it live in water system .
It look ripe in an aquarium or in a bowlful of water , so , no need for watering nor grime . It is also a especial plant life because it is the last surviving species from its genus , and it is an endangered species , so , if you grow some , you will serve its conservation as well .
6. Brocchinia (Brocchinia reducta)
Another extra carnivorous plant , Brocchiniais also a succulent and a bromeliad . It has the distinctive Ananas comosus leaf shape , with a large , beautiful little potato of sleek looking at and flesh foliage . These are of a park to silver gullible or blue green .
They also have a lite pattern of wanton stripe on them . These are first upright , then they open out , forming a rose window that can be between 3 and 12 inches tall and wide ( 7.5 to 30 centimeter ) .
The ideal houseplant then …
Also because it catch fly and mosquitoes …
But how does it do it ? In the middle of the leaves , where we irrigate standardised bromeliads , this one has water too …
But it is very acidic ( 2.8 to 3.0 ) and filled with enzymes that digest the ill-starred insect that slip into it .
Last but not least , this works ’s liquid also smack very nice and sweet . Just do n’t descend for it as insects do . It ’s a trap !
7. Sundews (Drosera spp.)
sundew plant are one of the most known , common and iconic carnivorous plants in the populace . Though it may suffer from being shadow by Venus flytrap , the 194 species in this genera are quite celebrated indeed .
You cognise what I am talk about ? Sundews are those tiny , plants whose modified leaves are full of steamy hair , that look like they have a drop of transparent mucilage at the tips … Those parting that curl up when an get stuck in them …
The plants have a unknown uprise habit … They tend to consist flat on the ground , a fleck like treacherous carpets or door mat … So insects do n’t even realize that they are walk into a trap !
They have flaming red in them , and also light green . The contrast is clearly an eye catching “ neon sign ” for trivial animate being … But in a terrarium or weed , these colors are very attractive .
Their sizing usually range between 7 and 10 inches in diameter ( 18 and 25 atomic number 96 ) , so you could fit one on a shelf or in a corner of your desk …
8. Corkscrew Plant (Genlisea spp.)
Corkscrew flora is a semi - aquatic insectivorous genus of plants make up about 30 species .
While it may not be showy , it looks exotic and weird at closelipped range , and it does add a mint of originality to compositions , especially in terrariums even when not in bloom …
Yes , because this is a flower bug eater , and some species in reality have very beautiful blossom , likeGenlisea aurea(with a grim yellow , almost ocher blossom ) andGenlisea subglabra(lavender ) .
These are really odd wrought and exotic . They look a bit like dance women with long skirts …
But the leaves are very passably too . They finish to be pear-shaped , lustrous and fleshy and shaped a snatch like tea spoonful .
They are small works you’re able to keep on your desk . The giving is 4 to 5 in across ( 10 to 12.5 cm ) .
9. Cobra Lily (Darlingtonia californica)
blab out of very unusual flesh eating plants … Meet cobra lily , also known as California pitcher industrial plant … It does in fact have a pitcher , like the famousNepenthes , but …
The overall shape of the flora is that of a cobra standing up and ready to bite … That alone makes it impressive , but that ’s not all …
The pitchers are really translucent ! you’re able to see the Inner Light catch through them ! That make them look like strange methamphetamine statues … It does have a reason … They do this to confuse insects . and there is more …
They color are sensational ! The are a few flame flushed vein go along the pitchers , and normally concentrate “ under the cervix ” of the snake , a bit like in robins . Then , there are light dark-green veins all over … and in between them , translucent spots that are almost colorless !
They are also quite big , about 3 feet tall ( 90 cm ) , so no one hail to your home or garden will ever miss them !
10. Trumpet Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia spp.)
This character of carnivorous works has ewer too , but unlikeNepenthes , they do n’t grow on branch but straight from the earth . And they are very long ( 20 ” to 3 feet tall , or 50 to 90 centimeter ) and thin , with no ribs or “ wing on them ” .
Grown in clumps the display is stunning , very architectural and – colorful !
Yes , because the mintage ( 8 to 11 , scientists have not fit in yet ) of this genus start bright green at the bottom of the ewer and then they turn colored where the bunker sass is placed …
A clever manner to attract curious insects where they want them … .
And what colors ! flame red-faced , purple , bright sensationalistic ! These often have shape formed by veins , and a clump of trumpet ewer flora is a material spectacle .
And once a twelvemonth , a long stem turn will rise from them and bear a wonderfully tropical flower too !
11.Fly Bush (Roridula spp.)
As insect eating groups of plants go , this is tiny indeed . It is a family ( Roridulaceae ) with only one genus , and a genus with only one mintage .
So , they are two plant in the ending … one self-aggrandizing ( 6 feet and 7 inches , or 2 cadence grandiloquent ) and the other littler ( 4 feet or 1.2 meters improbable ) . They are very peculiar and original too … Just bear with me .
Like many unknown plants , they come from South Africa , where they grow at in high spirits altitudes on mountains .
They face a flake like spiky shrubs , which will add a peachy architectural note value to terrace and gardens , though you need to grow them in containers .
The foresighted ambuscade that are its leaves start from the al-Qaida and forge turgid little potato . The leave have sticky tentacles which capture insects .
But they are less embarrassing thanDrosera , so , crawling guest bug out by getting a small foot stuck and , as they struggle to get gratuitous , they end up becoming immobilized .
But there ’s more . From September to December , this plant is in bloom with beautiful flowers with five ashen and red and gullible sepal .
12. Bladderworts (Utricularia spp.)
These are very unknown carnivorous plant indeed … The 215 species of this genus in fact use “ bladder ” that can be between 0.2 mm ( microscopic ) and ½ inch ( 1.2 cm ) in size . But these are not above ground … No !
They are attached to the tooth root ! Why ? Because these plants consume very low creature that hold out in the ground or in the water .
Correct , in the water … This is because some common species likeUtricularia vulgarisare aquatic and they feed on Pisces fry , mosquito larvae , nematodes and water flees . They choose seafood , basically …
The flora are unassuming , with a few tiny leaves at the base , but the flower are quite exotic looking at and beautiful .
They look like butterflies and they seem on long stem . They are commonly white , reddish blue , lavender or yellow .
If you need to keep the universe of insect larva of your pond at bay , you could do it with lovely flowers that belt down out of the water as if out of nowhere .
13. Pitcher Plant (Nepenthes spp.)
We ultimately total to the iconic pitcher plant ! These wonderful and alien bug eating plants come from all over the Indian Ocean drainage basin , and there are about 170 species at the moment , but new ones are being discovered all the time .
They like to grow in very wet rainforests and at their tolerance , often at fairly high height . This stand for that they are not easy to discover …
You lie with which plant life I am talking about … Those alien looking hemipterous insect eat shrubs with waxy oval leaves and pitcher hanging underneath them …
They are just fantastic … They can turn any garden into a full blown exotic paradise with their front .
And people are loving them more and more . In fact , they were once found only in botanic gardens ( I still remember when I first saw one at Kew ) , but now you may buy them online and grow them yourselves .
The pitchers are commonly in a combining of colors : light green , red , sensationalistic , orange and purpleness .
Some specie likeNepenthes vogeliihave spots ( yellow-bellied on purple in this vitrine ) . Others have beautiful stripes with striking colour contrast , likeNepenthes mollis .
The pitchers change in size , reaching 1 base in height ( 30 curium ) and 4.5 inches in width ( 14 cm ) . The plants too go from light specimens that reach a foot ( 30 centimeter ) to giants ten meter marvellous ( 10 ft or 3 meters ) .
The Weird and Amazing World of Carnivorous Plants
You will admit that bug wipe out plants are just stunning ! If you like the unusual , you will certainly fall in sexual love with them …
And you may get the best of both worlds with them : a strikingly beautiful plant and few insects around , great is n’t it ? For you , that is , not for the poor little insects …
write By
Amber Noyes was bear and bring up in a suburban California town , San Mateo . She nurse a master ’s degree in horticulture from the University of California as well as a BS in Biology from the University of San Francisco . With experience work on an constitutive farm , water conservation research , farmers ’ markets , and flora nursery , she empathise what makes plants thrive and how we can good understand the connection between microclimate and plant life health . When she ’s not on the land , Amber loves informing people of new ideas / things related to gardening , especially organic horticulture , houseplant , and produce plants in a small quad .
