The Venus Flytrap is one of the most well known of the carnivorous plants. they can be found to purchase seasonally through many local home and garden centers and through online purchasing. Although one of the most well known, they are not the easiest to keep alive and they take several years to mature, unlike the carnivorous Sundew
which can live in a variety of environments and can mature in as little as 3 months depending on the variety.
If you are introducing children to carnivorous plant, The Venus Flytrap
is really cool, but hard to keep alive and not as fun to watch eat as a Sundew
in my opinion.
is really cool, but hard to keep alive and not as fun to watch eat as a Sundew in my opinion.
Below I have included some detailed information obtained by Wikipedia.
Venus Flytrap is a plant whose structure can be described as a rosette of four to seven leaves, which arise from a short subterranean stem that is actually a bulb-like object. Each stem reaches a maximum size of about three to ten centimeters, depending on the time of year;[4] longer leaves with robust traps are usually formed after flowering. Flytraps that have more than seven leaves are colonies formed by rosettes that have divided beneath the ground.
The leaf blade is divided into two regions: a flat, heart-shaped photosynthesis-capable petiole, and a pair of terminal lobes hinged at the midrib, forming the trap which is the true leaf. The upper surface of these lobes contains red anthocyanin pigments and its edges secrete mucilage. The lobes exhibit rapid plant movements, snapping shut when stimulated by prey. The trapping mechanism is tripped when prey contacts one of the three hair-like trichomes that are found on the upper surface of each of the lobes. The mechanism is so highly specialized that it can distinguish between living prey and non-prey stimuli, such as falling raindrops;[5] two trigger hairs must be touched in succession within 20 seconds of each other or one hair touched twice in rapid succession,[5] whereupon the lobes of the trap will snap shut, typically in about one-tenth of a second.[6] The edges of the lobes are fringed by stiff hair-like protrusions or cilia, which mesh together and prevent large prey from escaping. These protrusions, and the trigger hairs (also known as sensitive hairs) are likely homologous with the tentacles found in this plant’s close relatives, the sundews. Scientists have concluded that the snap trap evolved from a fly-paper trap similar to that of Drosera.[7]
The holes in the meshwork allow small prey to escape, presumably because the benefit that would be obtained from them would be less than the cost of digesting them. If the prey is too small and escapes, the trap will usually reopen within 12 hours. If the prey moves around in the trap, it tightens and digestion begins more quickly.
Speed of closing can vary depending on the amount of humidity, light, size of prey, and general growing conditions. The speed with which traps close can be used as an indicator of a plant's general health. Venus flytraps are not as humidity-dependent as are some other carnivorous plants, such as Nepenthes, Cephalotus, most Heliamphora, and some Drosera.
Wikipedia contributors. "Venus flytrap." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 7 Jan. 2017. Web. 27 Jan. 2017.
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