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| We're glad you are interested in getting started as a carnivorous plant (CP) grower. CP's are enjoyable, rewarding and educational. Here are a few simple tips on how to start. Supplies : Before you buy the plants, you should make sure you have the supplies that you will need. The soil and pots are available at Walter Andersen Nursery in Poway. Water : The most common mistake new CP growers make is to water their CP's with San Diego area tap water. Local tap water mineral content is too high and will kill your CP's in a month or two. Get low sodium/no sodium water from water machines, distilled water from the store, or purified water from a reverse osmosis device at home. Always use this kind of water on your CP's. Soil : The growing medium is very important as well. Dirt from your backyard is too high in mineral content. Initially, buy two kinds of medium and mix them together in a 50/50 mix. 1) Genuine Canadian sphagnum peat; beware of nurseries that will tell you that some other kind is genuine; many nursery employees haven't a clue about peat! Look on the bag: If it says "Canadian Sphagnum Peat", then it is the real stuff. 2) Clean sand is the other ingredient. Beware of construction or other types of sand that have not been washed clean. It could be contaminated with ocean sand, other minerals and other things that are toxic to your CP. Bags labeled horticultural sand, or washed sand for children's sand boxes are best. Some construction sand has been washed clean too. Read the bag. Just mix these two ingredients in a 50/50 mix, and you'll be ready to plant many kinds (but not all) of CP's. Pots : Plastic or glazed ceramic pots are needed. Make sure the ceramics are glazed on the inside as well. Terra cotta, and other unglazed ceramics, will eventually absorb all sorts of the minerals, until a toxic level builds up in the pot. It is best to avoid dark colors which will heat up the pot in the sun. Four inch diameter or square pots are fine for small, "starter" plants, and six to eight inch pots for larger plants. Don't forget that you need water basins or deep trays so you can set your pots in water. These basins or trays must also be plastic or glazed on the inside. Now you have your supplies, so it is time to purchase the plants. For starters, we recommend three easy to grow and readily available CP's: The Venus Fly Trap (VFT), the Purple American Pitcher Plant and the Cape Sundew. Venus Fly Trap (Dionaea muscipula): Available through the internet and at Walter Andersen-Poway. Plant in the 50/50 peat and sand mix, set the pot in a basin or tray containing 1-2 inches of purified water. Keep outside in full or partial sun (no full sun on extremely hot days). It will be dormant from early November until the first part of March, so keep it in shady areas with only a little sun during the dormant periods. Purple American Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia Purpurea): Available at the same places as the VFT's above. Same soil mix and sun instructions and same dormancy period as the VFT. Cape Sundew (Drosera Capensis): Available at the same places as the VFT's above. Same soil mix, water and sun instructions. However, the Cape Sundew has no dormancy period, so you can grow it all year around. Finally, start collecting all of the books and internet references that you can get on CP's. The more you know, the better your CP's will grow. One of the very best and most readily available books is The Savage Garden by Peter D'Amato. It is easy to read and understand, and it has a lot of fascinating and even humorous information in it. On the internet, get information from the International Carnivorous Plant Society at www.carnivorousplants.org. A good source of plants is California Carnivores at www.californiacarnivores.com.
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