Carnivores as ornamental plants are very trendy. We show you how to properly repot carnivorous plants and what needs to be considered when caring for them.

Carnivorous Plant Repotting Video Tutorial [Music: www.bensound.com]

More and more people are interested in carnivorous plants. No wonder, after all, the exotic houseplants are absolutely fascinating and often an extraordinary eye-catcher. It should be noted, however, that the carnivores are quite demanding in their care, especially the right location and the right soil are essential for their successful cultivation. In addition, the carnivorous plants have to be repotted regularly - in this article we will tell you how to do this and what you have to pay particular attention to.

Although most carnivores are not particularly vigorous houseplants, it is worth repotting them once a year. The reason for this is the soil for the carnivorous plants: The peat it contains decomposes over time and thus loses its ability to store water - so that the carnivores find optimal conditions for growth, the substrate must therefore be changed regularly.

When should you repot carnivorous plants?

Basically, it can be assumed that carnivores should be repotted once a year in order to thrive optimally. Early spring is best for this: the growing season for carnivorous houseplants begins between the end of February and the beginning of March, which creates ideal conditions for good growth in the new pot. However, repotting is always associated with stress for the plant. For this reason, plants that are already weak (e.g. after an infestation with pests) should be transplanted at a later point in time after a sufficient recovery period.

Repot carnivorous plants: Instructions

To ensure that carnivorous plants continue to be an exotic eye-catcher in the room for years to come, you should not do without regular repotting. Luckily, this isn't magic, it's really easy to do with the right instructions.

You need this

As with everything, preparation is the be-all and end-all when repotting. To ensure that the plant can be transplanted without any problems, you should have the following equipment at hand:

  • Flower pot with inner pot and saucer
  • Plant Clay
  • Substrate for carnivorous plants
  • Shovel
  • Water
The following materials are required for repotting carnivores

The right soil for carnivorous plants

If you use simple potting soil when transplanting carnivores, you will quickly have to struggle with sickly houseplants. In fact, carnivorous plants have very special requirements for their plant substrate, so that they cannot cope with conventional potting soil. The nutrient content in particular plays an important role: carnivores naturally occur primarily in barren areas with a low nutrient content in the soil. They have therefore developed their typical prey-catching behavior in order to secure their nutrient supply. If you give the carnivorous plants a nutrient-rich substrate, there can be an oversupply and, in the worst case, toxic reactions. In addition, many carnivorous plants prefer a rather acidic pH value and a high water storage capacity in the soil. Ideally, you should therefore use special soil for carnivorous plants when repotting carnivores, as this exactly meets the needs of the exciting exotic species. These can be found in any well-stocked gardening store. Advanced gardeners mix their carnivore soil from peat, quartz sand and gravel themselves, but it is often difficult for a layman to find a balance between the components.

In order to meet the high demands of carnivores, a special soil for carnivorous plants should be used

The perfect container for carnivorous plants

In theory, any pot is suitable for planting carnivores. However, a combination of pot, inner pot and saucer is optimal - with this trick you can extend the watering intervals of the carnivorous plants. Since most carnivores depend on an evenly moist soil, they need to be watered regularly. Unfortunately, however, the plants are sensitive to waterlogging, which is why the correct dosage of irrigation water is like a real tightrope act. If, on the other hand, you place a saucer under the plant and use an inner pot with drainage holes, you only have to make sure that the saucer is regularly wateredfill. In addition to the type of container, the size is also of crucial importance when repotting carnivores. Of course, the new pot should be at least the same size as the old pot, so that the plants have enough space to develop. However, you should not choose a new pot that is too big either: since carnivores are generally considered to be slow-growing plants, they find it difficult to fill the new pot. The new pot should therefore only be slightly larger than the previous one.

The carnivore coaster should be filled with water regularly

Procedure for repotting carnivorous plants

If you want to repot a carnivore plant, you should start by preparing the new planter. To do this, first fill a few balls of the so-called plant clay into the inner pot. The coarse-grained plant granules serve as additional drainage and can also store water and release it back into the soil if necessary. Then you fill the pot with the special carnivore soil. Now the carnivorous plant can be carefully removed from the old pot. Since the roots of carnivores are particularly fine and vulnerable, you should proceed cautiously and also be careful when removing the soil afterwards. Larger remnants of the old soil can also remain on the plant if they cannot be removed without damaging the roots. Then the plant is placed loosely in the new pot and this is filled with carnivore soil. Finally, after you have pressed the plant lightly, you should fill the saucer with water and place the plant together with the pot and inner pot on these spots - this way the plant can draw the water it needs itself.

Carnivore roots are very delicate, so caution is required

Here is a summary:

1. Fill the inner pot with some plant clay

2. Fill carnivore soil in inner pot

3. Carefully remove carnivorous plant from old plant pot, carefully removing old soil

4. Place the plant loosely in the pot and fill it up with carnivore soil

5. Gently press carnivorous plant

6. Fill the saucer with water and put the pot in itplant
Plant clay provides additional drainage and can store water

The perfect location for carnivorous plants

Carnivores are a real eye-catcher in the home andwant to be displayed accordingly. However, you should note that exotic houseplants have special requirements for their location. Most carnivorous plants need a lot of light, which is why a bright location is essential. A south-facing window is therefore the ideal place for many carnivores. But not only light plays a role in the choice of location - many carnivorous plants also set conditions in terms of humidity in the room. Especially pitcher plants (Nepenthes) need a high humidity of at least 60%, but the more robust Venus flytrap (Dionaea) also enjoys a humidity of at least 40% %. In order to ensure this, you should treat your carnivores to a place with as little wind as possible, where they are protected from dry heating air (especially in winter).

Would you also like to grow a carnivorous plant but can't decide? We have compiled the 6 most popular carnivorous houseplants for you.

Many thanks to Floragard for the support!

Category:

Houseplants