Date: Fri, 30 Jun 2000 12:15:21 -0700 (PDT) From: michael pagoulatos <michaelpagoulatos@yahoo.com> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg1973$foo@default> Subject: TO David Anders
"1) I've read several different soil mix
recommendations for Venus Flytraps,
form 50% Peat Moss - 50% sand to 2/3 Peat Moss - 1/3
sand."
>Both will work.
"Is the mix by weight or volume? Since Peat Moss is
lighter than sand, maybe
thats where the difference in mixtures arises.".
> Yes, the mix is by volume.
"Should the Peat be wetted and squeezed before mixing
to force out air
pcokets? Or does one just mix the sand+peat together,
and plant the VFT and
water it, while gently pressing the soil down?".
> I mix the ingredients in a bucket dry, add water,
and
mix again. I let it sit overnight for the peat moss
to become saturated. Then, I fill the pot with medium
and let it sit another day for the medium to settle.
Then I plant. For large quantities of mixture (for a
bog) I mix the ingredients in a hard-plastic
children's swimming pool. In this case, after the bog
is filled, let the mixture settle for 2-3 weeks (if
you don't, roots of plants may be bent or crushed if
the mixture settles too much.
"2) During summer growth my sun room stays fairly
warm at night, say 75
degrees. During the day it might get up to 90, even
with the AC (in another
room). Will this night time temperature damage the
plant?".
> No.
"3) someone posted on rec.gardens that VFTs shouldnt
be over fed (all traps
simultaneously closed on insects) because they dont
need the extra
nutrients. Is this true? (I doubt it)".
> They actually don't need to be fed at all. They can
catch enough insects on their own. Keep in mind that
the traps can open and close a limited number of
times, after which they die.
Take care,
Michael Pagoulatos
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Tue Jan 02 2001 - 17:35:09 PST