
The best foods for your Venus flytrap:
- Mealworms: These small freeze-dried worms are a nutritious food source for Venus flytraps which you can buy from many pet shops and reptile specialists. ...
- Bloodworms: Their name may be disgusting, but these tiny freeze-dried worms can be a great food source for Venus flytraps. ...
- Crickets: If you can find dried crickets that are suitably small, they make a fine snack for adult Venus flytraps. Tubs of dried crickets are typically available for about £5. ...
What do Venus flytraps eat?
Venus flytraps can consume a variety of bugs like, for example, ants, flies, crickets, spiders, beetles, slugs, and caterpillar. They can consume any type of insect as long as they can fit inside the trap, and the plant can capture them. Even though you can employ almost any type of insect, some are better suited than others.
Can you feed baby Venus fly traps?
When Venus fly traps are young, it is challenging to find such a small insect (besides ants). But, remember, you can break a bug and feed your plant a small enough piece. It is possible to feed baby Venus flytrap. But it can be very challenging.
How do Venus flytraps get rid of bugs?
When a Venus flytrap captures an insect, it closes and starts producing digestive enzymes inside the trap. The plant digests the bugs and extracts key nutrients to supplement their diet. Do Venus Flytraps Need Bugs to Survive?

Can you feed a Venus flytrap plant food?
Don't give your plant anything it wouldn't catch naturally. That means no chocolate, chicken, or other human food. Bugs only! Don't give your plant fertiliser or any other normal 'plant food' - like most carnivorous plants, they prefer to grow in nutrient-poor soil.
What do you feed a Venus flytrap without flies?
Feed larger Venus flytrap leaves adult crickets, ants, small beetles, grasshoppers, spiders, millipedes, sowbugs and suitably sized slugs. In their native habitat, Venus flytraps don't often capture flies, but instead many kinds of crawling insects, such as beetles and ants.
Do you have to feed every Venus flytrap?
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Can you feed Venus fly traps sugar?
0:005:35What If You Feed a Venus Flytrap Candy Instead of Flies? - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThey get it from bugs where they which they catch and then they use their nitrogen and phosphorus soMoreThey get it from bugs where they which they catch and then they use their nitrogen and phosphorus so surprisingly venus fly traps actually use photosynthesis just like other plants.
Can you feed Venus flytraps fish flakes?
Betta fish pellets are my personal preference for Venus fly trap food. It may seem like an unusual choice, but there is lengthy discussion on various forums about the benefits of betta fish food for nearly all carnivorous plants. They have provided fantastic results for me!
Can I feed my Venus flytrap dead bugs?
The trick is that the prey must be alive when caught. Dead flies won't work in Venus flytrap feeding; the insect must move around inside the trap to trigger it to close and begin digesting the food. It also needs to be small enough that the trap can close tightly around it to keep out bacteria.
How do I make my Venus flytrap thrive?
Flytraps come from a swamp in the Carolinas where they live in full sun, high humidity and pure water, which is the most important element. “To help the plant thrive, give it distilled or reverse osmosis water,” Read says. “Even rainwater.” Dry air, especially Santa Ana winds, can damage plants quickly.
How do I attract flies to my Venus flytrap?
To attract flies or other prey, the Venus flytrap secretes nectar on to its open traps. Insects smell the sweet nectar and once they land on the leaves, they trip the trigger hairs on the outside of the traps. This causes the cells in the leaves to expand.
How often should I water my Venus flytrap?
Most fly traps will only need to be watered every 10 to 14 days. The soil should become much drier (though never fully dry). The soil directly around the base and roots should be slightly damp, while the rest of the soil is dry. Water the plant like you would any other time, making sure to water thoroughly.
What Can You Feed a Venus Flytrap?
Only give flytraps insects that are small enough for the trap to close tightly enough to keep out bacteria. A rule of thumb is to use insects that are no larger than a third of the trap’s size (which are generally about 1″ big on a typical plant).
What Should You Not Feed to Venus Flytraps?
When feeding Venus flytraps, the don’ts are just as important as the dos:
How Often Should I Feed My Venus Flytrap?
Note that Venus flytraps can go for long periods without eating insects, such as during dormant winter months. They require a cold winter dormancy period between November and February. Be careful not to overfeed your flytraps during growing season since they require just two insects each month to obtain sufficient nutrition.
List of Food Options for Venus Flytrap
As you might notice from the list below, many arthropods are suitable to feed for Venus flytraps. Also, some less conventional options include plant food. Make sure to read the text below the list to learn which are the best and most practical alternatives for your specific scenario.
What You Should Never Feed Venus Flytrap
With so much misinformation out there about what to feed Venus flytraps. I felt highly compelled to emphasize what you should never feed your Venus flytrap:
Insects You Should Avoid Feeding to Venus Flytraps
Venus flytrap can consume almost any insect. However, some bugs are not the most suitable options. Here is a list of which ones to avoid:
Venus Flytrap Feeding Instructions
Without proper instructions, it is not recommended to feed Venus flytraps. Feeding your plant incorrectly can end up harming it. For that reason, you must make sure to go over all of this information.
How to Avoid Black Leaves After Feeding Venus Flytraps
Sometimes after feeding a venus flytrap, their leaves turn black. Why does that happen? And how should you prevent it? Here is an explanation.
What to feed Venus flytrap?
The first three options: dried crickets, freeze-dried mealworms, and bloodworms, are all dead feed. They have been dried up and dehydrated. Before feeding to a Venus flytrap, you must use water to rehydrate the bugs. The convenient thing about these three options is the price and durability.
What is the purpose of feeding a Venus flytrap?
Feeding a Venus flytrap is a unique and fun experience. Venus flytrap benefits from capturing prey and consuming bugs. In this article, I would like to share what I have learned about feeding Venus flytraps, including food options and the feeding method. Venus flytraps capture and consume insects and arachnids to extract critical nutrients ...
How to feed a dead bug to Venus flytrap?
Dead bugs from the pet store usually are dehydrated. Before you feed one to a Venus flytrap, you must rehydrate the bug. Use a few droplets of distilled water to hydrate it. If you are using a dead bug you caught or found, there is no need to hydrate it.
How big of a bug can a Venus fly trap fit?
Usually, a bug that is about 1/3 of the size of the trap should fit completely in it. Depending on the size of your venus flytrap you can consider the options below. You must also decide between live and dead feed. Venus flytraps are not picky in terms of food. They can consume almost any type of insect or spider.
How long does it take for a Venus flytrap to digest?
The digestion process can take up to two weeks, so make sure the plant has finished the previous meal before you introduce a new one. No need to feed dormant plants: In the winter, Venus flytrap experience dormancy, which is similar to hibernation. During this process, there is no need to feed them.
Where are Venus flytraps native to?
Venus Flytrap Food Options. Venus flytraps are native to the wetlands of South Carolina and North Carolina in the United States. There, they grow in inferior soil, with no access to nutrients. Over the years, Venus flytraps have evolved to be successful predatory plants.
How to get bugs out of a plant?
Keep an eye on the plant for a few minutes. Some bugs can try to escape from the plant by eating their way out or using brute force. Then, monitor the trap in the next weeks to ensure the feeding was successful.
Feeding The Venus Flytrap Living Insects
The best way to feed your Venus Flytrap is to give it live insects. Because this mimics the natural habitat of the Venus Flytrap, which the plant will be very satisfied with.
Feeding The Venus Flytrap Dead Insects (And Fooling The Snaptrap)
Another way to feed your Venus Flytrap is to feed it dead insects. The problem with this method is that the plant will detect that the insect is dead, and thus won’t accept your gift.
Can You Feed Your Venus Flytrap Human Food?
You are such a generous person, wanting to share your delicious supper with your carnivorous plant. But before you give your Venus Flytrap a piece of your hamburger or tofu, keep in mind that the food can actually harm the plant.
Best Foods For Your Venus Flytrap
The best foods for the Venus Flytrap are living insects that are no bigger than 1/3 of the snaptrap and are not too small that they can escape the trap when it closes.
Can You Overfeed Your Venus Flytrap
There are numerous sources on the internet that say that overfeeding a Venus Flytrap is not possible. Although I wouldn’t recommend feeding all the traps of a plant every week. You might overfeed it and it will die. The plant doesn’t need to be fed every week with 20 insects to survive or grow strong.
How Long Does It Take For The Flytrap To Digest Insects?
Now that you have followed the instructions in this blog post and you have given your Venus Flytrap a delicious insect to eat, it’s time for the plant to digest the prey. The digesting process of the insect starts after 15 minutes of feeding when the trap of the Venus Flytrap fully closes.
How Long Can Venus Flytraps Go Without Food
Are you worried about your Venus Flytrap not catching enough insects to stay healthy and wondering how long the Dionaea muscipula can live without catching any prey?
What should I feed my Venus flytrap?
The only things you should feed your Venus flytraps are insects. Any kind of insect is fine. Flies, beetles, spiders, wasps, earwigs, and pretty much anything that crawls or flies and is an insect is good.
Do Venus flytraps need to be fed?
While feeding is not required, Venus flytraps will grow more quickly and have overall better general health if they are allowed to catch insects or fed on a regular basis.
Can Venus fly traps be fed?
DO NOT feed your Venus Fly Trap anything other than insects. Under no circumstances should a Venus Fly Trap be fed something that it couldn’t catch on its own in nature. First of all, this will likely make the trap turn black and die if it actually forms a seal around the meat and starts to digest it.
When Do Venus Fly Traps Start Eating?
Young or baby Venus flytraps, under one-year-old, are very tiny. During the first year, the plant looks exactly like an adult plant, but small. It has defined traps that function. They can open and close upon appropriate stimuli.
Should You Feed Young Venus Flytrap?
It is a challenge to feed young Venus flytraps due to their size. In the later sections, you will learn how to feed baby Venus flytraps. But, for now, you must first make an assessment. In many cases, it does not make sense to feed a Venus flytrap.
Proper Care vs Feeding
Venus flytraps benefit from sporadic feeding. A single bug every few weeks can substantially promote the plant’s growth. But, besides feeding, there are other alternatives to stimulate growth.
How to Feed a Baby or Young Venus Flytrap
The easiest way to feed a Venus flytrap is to place the plant outdoors. Venus flytraps are effective predators and can capture their own food. Still, in some cases, owners need to take charge of the feeding.
