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Largest Dionaea Trap Competition 2010


Trev

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Largest Dionaea Trap Competition 2010

It's time again for the Biggest Trap Competition :shock:

Prize for the winner this year is a Dionaea "Giant Form X Piranha"

The competition is open to anyone worldwide but the prize can only be sent within Europe.

The rules are:

The trap must be closed and photographed parallel to the camera, with a clear plastic ruler (in millimetres) in front of the trap, the trap is to be measured across the side just below the teeth, the teeth are NOT included in the measurement. Like this:

trapmeasure.jpg

Post your pictures here. You can enter as many times as you like. Pictures must be taken this year. Competition ends September 31st. Please keep discussion to a minimum, so the thread does not get flooded.

May the biggest trap win! :shock:

Trev :)

Edited by Trev
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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest Dino Belvedere

It's taken nine months to get over losing last year's competition at the last minute, but I'm ok now. Mine are small at the moment, but I will win this year...oh yes, I will.

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Guest msjboy

Hello,

I am new to the this great site! I was wondering if anyone can add to this related contest subject "How to grow huge traps of 5 cm sizes". Here is what I have gathered so far so please do add your knowledge basis to this :

For a plant, it should be at least 3 - 5 years old to begin with. Use at least a one gallon plastic pot, the lighter in colour the better as dark pots will make the roots too hot. Use a 50/50 mixture of sphagnum peat moss and perlite to fill the pot and plant your flytrap(s). If you can get hold of some live sphagnum which would simulate its natural growing environment, you can use a thin cover of it over the dirt and around the flytrap and that will help keep the humidity around the plant higher. Water the plants in well with mineral free water ( eg RO, or distilled water ). Put your pot in a bucket or bowl and let it sit in water that is 1/8 - 1/4 as deep as the pot is tall (eg. 8 inch pot in one to two inches of water). Put it outside in the sun, 6 hours a day of direct sun is usually good enough. They attract their own food so all you have to do is make sure the water level in the bucket stays the same. If the moss or planting mix looks like it's drying on top you may have to top water for a couple of weeks until the flytrap puts out new roots. It is also said, do not try to leave the plants in that is greater than 35 C as the plant will stop growing. In the natural environment, it may get to 40C, the constant flow of the bogs keeps it cool and will continue growth. The natural humdity may even reach near 100% but 60% or so should be adequate.

Do fee the plant bi-weekly. No artificial lighting for the plant is needed.

If growing in a hothouse, one might grown the plant under 50% shade to help keep the greenhouse cool so you might want to break in the plants to direct sun slowly although all that will happen if they go straight out under the sun is that the leaves/traps it comes with may sunburn and possibly shrivel a bit. Any new trap that grows for you out under the sun will show a noticeable positive difference in size, colour and robustness.

The largest traps should appear by mid-late August.

 

Hope all you folks trying to grow these large sized traps can help out with this knowledge set.

Best regs

msjboy

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Hello,

I am new to the this great site! I was wondering if anyone can add to this related contest subject "How to grow huge traps of 5 cm sizes". Here is what I have gathered so far so please do add your knowledge basis to this . . .

Hope all you folks trying to grow these large sized traps can help out with this knowledge set.

Best regs

msjboy

Some of that is a bit of a myth. I have had several Dionaea cultivars -- B52, Southwest Giant, Dingley Giant, Low Giant, and Big Mouth -- traps exceed 5.6 cm in length, generally by August or September in North America; and the size of the containers seemed to have played little role. Some were indeed in gallon pots while others were in relatively tiny containers and largely root-bound; both issued very large, similar-sized plants.

One thing that I would suggest is growing them on the slightly drier side -- allowing the trays to dry before adding water; that seems to play a bit of a role in producing larger, more vigorous plants. My preferred compost has always been either straight peat or a 2:1 or 1:1 mix of peat to horticultural -- quartz -- sand; and while some growers have live sphagnum top-dressings, the amount of sun my plants receive would likely kill most species of sphagnum . . .

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This is a bit unorthodox as most growers argue never let the tray goes completely dry etc but I can see it could work if the 'dry period' is minimised to a couple of hours (not during the middle of the day when the heat is on). Wild plants will need to put up with the fluctuations in humidity/water level and that's probably why they are far more robust than cultivated plants.

I'm going to give it a go with a mature SWG in a good sized pot (half liter) and report back in a couple of months' time.

I dont keep my VFT's standing in water, the trays have capillary matting in the bottom, and I water them when it starts to dry up but only enough that the plants will soak up in 24 hours. Most people who have seen Dionaea growing in the wild are surprised how dry it is.

Trev.

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  • 1 month later...

It's the same size as Carl's but I thought i'd post it anyway...

629B52_44mm.jpg

It is from a B52 that I bought in February, awesome plant!

EDIT: That'll be 44mm, nearly forgot to mention that Doh :P !

Edited by Mags
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Nice ruler Mark :punch:

Yeah - I want one too!!

I'm guessing it's Dumbo, or My Little Pony?

Cool...

Sadly, my biggest trap - other than my mouth, o'course :biggrin: - is 3.9cm.

I'll give the plant some more flies, and hope...

Edited by Vic2
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I prefer to use another term. That word is not encouraged in our house unless it is strictly veterinary (and we have 3 vets in the family) :sarcastic_hand:

EDIT Sorry, off topic, I know. But when one is getting on in his years he is allowed to.

Edited by James O'Neill
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