Drosera capensis, Cape Sundew, Carnivorous Plants

Who isn't fascinated by carnivorous plants? I've seen grown men on their hands and knees next to my bog garden trying to tease Venus fly traps to close. Or who hasn't wondered at Mother Nature's psychiatric profile for designing these little monsters of death? PMS expressed in the form of carnivorous plants. It could have been worse, people, it could have been worse.

Drosera capensis and the variety is 'alba'. This plant will self pollinate and produce a lot of seed, which if you don't want them seeding every pot in your collection, it's best to collect it....a form of birth control. Then you can choose where and when they multiply. These are interesting members of the Drosera genus. Their leaves move rather slowly, but eventually will wrap around their victim. I'll send complete instructions on the plant's care as well as how to germinate the seed. To give you an idea, give it distilled or rain water, keep very moist ( I use undrained containers like yogurt cups and solo plastic cups) in a mix of straight peat moss and perlite ( I like 1/2 and 1/2...the plants seem ok with it too) and keep it on a sunny window sill or under lights. I definitely suggest letting it summer outdoors where it will make an absolute pig out of itself catching and consuming insects. I highly recommend this plant as a beginner's carnivore.

Of course, you will have to endure the kidding of friends and family if this is the first carnivorous plant you have owned. "Got to feed Master", "Geeze, you've got a dark side to you", and the ever popular, "Where's the cat? Has anybody seen the cat?" are the ones I hear. Let them scoff, they're just jealous.

You can either feed the plant live insects you've caught for it or let it do it's own on the window sill or outdoors in the summer. It's not a good idea to feed it ground beef or other meat, it's just too fatty and pure protein and they have a hard time digesting it and it often goes bad and rots the plant. The following is a link to a cool picture of a D.capensis with quite a large "mouthful" >D. capensis with a moth.