With beautiful dewy leaves and vicious carnivorous tendencies, growing sundews at home may seem to be a daunting task to any new grower. These plants are, however, easy to cultivate in many indoor and outdoor spaces. From windowsills to garden pots, sundews are sure to be a beautiful addition to any plant collector’s home.
What are sundews?
Sundews, also known by their scientific name Drosera, are a genus of carnivorous plants that use sticky leaves to trap and digest insects. Hundreds of small, sticky tentacles protrude from every leaf on the plant, and these tentacles are covered in the shiny dew that trap insects. The name “sundew” derives from the way this dew glistens in the sunlight.
Over 250 species of these beautiful plants grow in bogs and wetlands all around the world, and 32 of these species are native to South Africa. Due to their interesting appearance and pest control capabilities, sundews have become quite popular amongst plant collectors.
How do you grow sundews at home?
Many new growers think that cultivating carnivorous plants at home is a difficult and laborious process. While that may be true for some carnivorous plant species, sundews are quite painless to grow at home.
1. Potting Sundews
Most sundews thrive in a mix of half sphagnum peat and half gritty components like perlite and silica sand. This kind of mix ensures their roots stay wet, the pot drains properly, and provides the right amount of acidity that sundews prefer. Many sundew species also thrive in sphagnum moss and perlite, although this can be a more expensive option if your collection grows bigger than one or two plants.
2. Watering Sundews
Sundews need to constantly be wet. Placing your pots in a tray and frequently topping up the tray water will ensure your sundews stay wet enough. Always use distilled water or rainwater, as sundews cannot tolerate high levels of minerals often present in tap water. Reverse osmosis water is also an affordable option if your tap water is unsuitable.
3. Ideal Light and Temperature for Sundews
Sundews thrive in bright sunlight and will grow happily when placed outdoors away from shade. Indoors, place sundews in a very bright windowsill or under grow lights. If your sundews look bright green or is not dewy, this means that your plant is not getting enough light and needs to be moved to a brighter spot. A happy sundew will look brightly coloured and will glisten with dew. Sundews grow in typically warm climates, but they are perfectly happy in normal indoor and outdoor temperatures, so long as they aren’t exposed to freezing temperatures.
4. Feeding Sundews
Your sundew will periodically catch its own food using via its sticky leaves. They do not however need to catch prey to survive, as this food acts more as fertilizer than essential sustenance. Like all plants, they get their energy from photosynthesis.
If you do however want to feed your sundew, use small amounts of fine fish food or insects you find around the house. Avoid overfeeding as this can cause mould to grow on your plant. Chemical fertilisers will burn and damage sundew leaves.
5. Propagating Sundews
Most sundews can easily be propagated from leaf cuttings. Pull a healthy leaf from the plant and place it in a container of clean distilled water. Cuttings need to be kept in bright light but away from direct sunlight. Within a few weeks, a new baby plant will sprout. Once it starts forming roots it can be planted out into a pot.
Sundews also produce flowers which often self-pollinate. After successful pollination, a seed pod will form. Once this seed pod swells and turns black, it is ready to harvest. Seeds can be sown on fresh carnivorous plant mix and will sprout within a few weeks. Keeping seed pots humid can improve the rate of germination, but always keep a close eye out for mould which can damage the seedlings. Allow seedlings to grow a few centimetres in size before planting them out.
By following the advice outlined above, sundews can easily be grown and propagated at home. Sundews are one of the fastest growing and most rewarding carnivorous plants to cultivate. Some recommended beginner species include Drosera capensis, Drosera aliceae, Drosera spatulata, Drosera filiformis (a frost hardy species), and Drosera scorpioides.
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