Re: VFT's and dormancy

John Walker (jorwa@syspac.com)
Thu, 17 Oct 1996 12:40:24 -0700

At 11:25 AM 10/17/96 -0700, you wrote:

>Do VFT require dormancy in the winter?

Hi Susan,

Yes, VFT's do require dormancy during the Winter months. Temps should be
under 50F for three to five months. Depending on where you live, you may be
able to keep your plants out of doors in their pots. In this case the
plants will seem to grow very slowly. If temps fall much under freezing the
plants will need some form of protection. Here in the Arizona desert I'm
forced to place the plants in a spare refridgerator for the dormancy period.
Oh, by the way the plants should also be kept drier durng dormancy than
during the rest of the year. Shoot for moist soil as opposed to wet.

>And are there any cp's that do?

Many CP's that are native to temperate climates will need a dormancy period
of one kind or another.

>I have a few cp's, but they aren't that big yet, and it is getting colder out
>here by me. Also, I have a heater (floor heater) underneath my plants,
>which I use to keep the room warm. Is that a problem?

Many tropical CP's will do fine growing year round if the temps are kept
from dropping during Winter. If your using a heater, make sure the air
doesn't become to dry.

If you have additional questions regarding specific plants, let us know what
type of plants you are growing and someone on the list ought to be able to
help you.

John in Phoenix