new to carnies :> need some advice!

helloo, so I got a bunch of carnies today and am very new to those :> (there are two non-carnie imposters on this pic). I've heard you're supposed to keep them in water trays because many of them are bog plants? I specifically got another pinguicula, a drosera filiformis, a small vft (just as an experiment if I can keep that one alive indoors with my growlights lol) and a darlingtona californica -> can I put all these into a water tray (or like lil dishes with water)? internet is giving me mixed opinions so I thought I'd ask here

also I got some carnivore substrate mix (there's unfertilized peat + quartz sand in there) and I was wondering if and when I should pot them into that? I guess the ones from the fancy plant store are already in substrate that's good for them but I'm not sure about the normal store-ones + the other (non pictured) pinguicula that I currently have is only in dead spaghnum (because I didn't have anything else on hand, oops-) after I attempted repotting it and broski just slid right out of it's root system 💀. The lower leafs are kinda dying row-wise but there is still some new growth in the middle + it bloomed so I still have some hope for it

by foxprism_

oblivious_fireball 2 days ago

It looks like the Pinguicula species is either Agnata or Ibarrae based on the leaves and flower. Hard to say which.

Drosera Filiformis: Requires very high light and nutrient poor bog soil(your purchased soil sounds perfect for this). Likes to be kept wet at all times, and requires a cold winter dormancy as its native to the east coast of north america.

Dionaea Muscipula: Requires massive amounts of light and nutrient poor bog soil. Likes to be kept wet at all times, and (arguably) needs a cold winter dormancy. It also generally best feeds on live prey, dead stuff won’t often trigger the traps fully.

Darlingtonia Californica: Requires massive amounts of light, potting mix can vary between moss, bog soil, or serpentine soil, but must be nutrient poor. Likes to be kept wet at all times, and requires a cold winter dormancy. Additionally, the roots are highly sensitive to heat and to a lesser degree they are sensitive to prolonged anoxic conditions in the soil. As a result hot stagnant water can very quickly kill the roots.

Pinguicula: Requires very strong light. Grows best in a very gritty and rocky potting mix(such as coarse sand, perlite or pumice, and vermiculite or very small amounts of peat) while a highly organic potting mix can cause it to rot. Does not like to be constantly wet, rather it favors letting the mix almost become dry on top before watering again, and most can handle brief periods of dryness on the surface just fine. Mexican Pings are evergreen and while some can handle chilly temps, they prefer moderate temperatures and frost can kill them. Prolonged drier conditions can cause certain species to drop their carnivorous leaves and grow smaller succulent leaves to improve their drought tolerance.

3 Comments

randomdepressedguy23 2 days ago

all of these plants need distilled water reverse ominous or rainwater. rainwater contains nutrients that don’t kill the plant making it nice to have
CaballerodeRobledal 2 days ago

Unless you really suspect your current substrate, I’d give them all a little settle in time before doing any repotting. I’m not a ping grower, but the VFT and D. Filiformis will need as much of that light as you can give them. I’ve heard that Darlingtonia are a bit of a varsity level plant and need cool roots at all times, you might want to look more into that. Tray method should work fine for VFT and Drosera.
oblivious_fireball 2 days ago

It looks like the Pinguicula species is either Agnata or Ibarrae based on the leaves and flower. Hard to say which.

Drosera Filiformis: Requires very high light and nutrient poor bog soil(your purchased soil sounds perfect for this). Likes to be kept wet at all times, and requires a cold winter dormancy as its native to the east coast of north america.

Dionaea Muscipula: Requires massive amounts of light and nutrient poor bog soil. Likes to be kept wet at all times, and (arguably) needs a cold winter dormancy. It also generally best feeds on live prey, dead stuff won’t often trigger the traps fully.

Darlingtonia Californica: Requires massive amounts of light, potting mix can vary between moss, bog soil, or serpentine soil, but must be nutrient poor. Likes to be kept wet at all times, and requires a cold winter dormancy. Additionally, the roots are highly sensitive to heat and to a lesser degree they are sensitive to prolonged anoxic conditions in the soil. As a result hot stagnant water can very quickly kill the roots.

Pinguicula: Requires very strong light. Grows best in a very gritty and rocky potting mix(such as coarse sand, perlite or pumice, and vermiculite or very small amounts of peat) while a highly organic potting mix can cause it to rot. Does not like to be constantly wet, rather it favors letting the mix almost become dry on top before watering again, and most can handle brief periods of dryness on the surface just fine. Mexican Pings are evergreen and while some can handle chilly temps, they prefer moderate temperatures and frost can kill them. Prolonged drier conditions can cause certain species to drop their carnivorous leaves and grow smaller succulent leaves to improve their drought tolerance.