Yossu Posted June 22, 2015 Report Share Posted June 22, 2015 We were eating some peas in the pod, and we came across a caterpillar in one of them. My first thought was to feed it to my new vft, but then it ocurred to me that caterpilars eat plants, so it may do more damage than good. Anyone any ideas? The kids are really keen to see something go in a trap, and as all of our domestic flies seem to have gone on holday, the traps are all open but empty! Thanks for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ahrens Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 It would probably work but the caterpillar may chew the trap. From talking to people at the NEC last week, some people are obsessed with extra feeding to their plants. the best thing is to just leave your plants alone and not feed them. They will take up some nutrients from the soil, this is normal for CP's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 It would work but there is a risk that the caterpillar would eat the trap escape and before you know it half you VFT has gone. I could also be too "juicy" for it and the trap could rot. James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 I think you're a bit jaded David! Have you forgotten the magic of watching a VFT in action? :-) Chances are it'll be fine. It can hardly decide which insects it doesn't want in the wild. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredG Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 I have to admit I can certainly see David's point. Feeding carnivorous plants was not really done until recently. I admit I did dabble with liquid fertiliser in pitchers in the 1980s and last year fed a Darlingtonia that I'd accidentally damaged the pitchers on and it was unable to feed itself fully. I also throw Garden Chafers into the VFTs when I'm clearing them out of the roses but that's because I have already caught them so I don't waste them.When you hear reports of people feeding chopped bloodworm to Stylidium flowers it does get a little on the silly side. One of the beauties of carnivorous plants is all you have to do is water them, the rest they do for themselves. They're so simple to look after. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 As James mentioned I found that large fleshy "food", such as caterpillars, tended to make the traps go mouldy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yossu Posted June 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 Thanks to everyone for the replies. I must admit to being a little over-excited, which was partly the motivation. Never really grew up, and the thrill of watching the VFT in action was too much! Also, having told the children about it, they are keen to see it too. I think I'll pass on the caterpillars for now. If I see a fly around I may try putting it in though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 Worse case scenario is you lose a trap. See what happens and experiment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robs Posted June 23, 2015 Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 Who feeds the plants in the wild ?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yossu Posted June 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2015 Who feeds the plants in the wild ?. There's a gardener, God I think he's called, who goes around feeding them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yossu Posted June 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 Well, we all had our fun today. I was sitting at the table with one of the girls, when a spider was foolish enough to walk across the windowsill. I grabbed some tweezers and carefully fed it to a trap. My audience (several little girls) were all highly amused and excited about it. I guess we can let nature take its course now. They've seen it in action, so are content to wait for it to catch something on its own now! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonW Posted October 18, 2016 Report Share Posted October 18, 2016 (edited) Some time since the last posting was made on this topic, but I have just joined CPUK, and hope that my very limited experience may be of assistance to someone. Regarding caterpillars and VFTs: I fed a few to several of mine, and without exception the traps closed tightly, digestion seemed to start, but the leaves turned black along the outline of the beast after about 2 days. Otherwise no permanent damage. So I just leave them to catch their own flies now, which they do extremely well. Short answer to the question: no way! Edited October 19, 2016 by DonW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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