If you’ve recently added a carnivorous plant to your collection, you’re probably wondering: “Do I actually need to feed this thing?” It’s a totally fair question, especially during the winter months when bugs aren’t exactly buzzing around your living room. The short answer? Don’t sweat it—you don’t *have* to feed your Venus flytrap. But, if you really want to, you can definitely give it a snack every now and then.
Why feeding isn’t a requirement
If you’re on the fence about getting a Venus flytrap because you’re worried about “meal prep,” I have good news. These plants are experts at attracting insects on their own using those iconic red-tinted traps. Even in the winter, the occasional stray fly or gnat usually finds its way to a windowsill, giving the plant all it needs.
But what if your house is a total “no-fly zone”? Still no worries. Your flytrap gets most of its essentials from its potting soil. In fact, you don’t even need to use fertilizer. If the plant ever runs low on nutrients, it’s smart enough to pull from the reserves stored in its leaves.
Tips for feeding your flytrap
If you’re like me and find the “snap” of the trap fascinating, you might want to try feeding it yourself. Venus flytraps mostly dine on flies and mosquitoes, though they’ll occasionally munch on a pillbug. Once an insect lands on those sensitive hairs inside the trap, *bam*—it shuts tight. The digestion process uses special enzymes to break down the prey over several days. Once the meal is finished, the trap opens back up, ready for the next guest.
What NOT to put in the trap:
- Large insects
- Dead bugs (unless you know the trick to trigger the trap!)
- Human food scraps
Feeding your plant “people food” like meat or dairy is a big no-no. It’ll actually cause the trap to rot and turn black. Stick to live insects, and make sure they aren’t too big—the rule of thumb is that the bug should be no more than a third of the size of the trap itself.
How often should you feed it?
Ask ten gardeners how often to feed a flytrap, and you’ll get ten different answers. Some say every few days; others say that’s way too much. My advice? Less is more. Overfeeding can actually overwhelm the plant with nutrients and cause it to die back. Honestly, it’s best to just feed it occasionally when you want to show off the “spectacle” to friends.
One last pro-tip: while it’s tempting to trigger the trap with your finger just to see it move, try to resist the urge. Each individual trap can only open and close about seven times before it dies off. You want to save those snaps for actual nutrition!
