DO have fun with Trapper!  Try fooling Trapper to close by taking a toothpick and lightly tapping the trigger hairs.  Tap once, nothing happens; but, the leaf is primed.  Tap twice and the trap snaps shut!  Traps shut quickly when warm, slowly when cold.  The trap will re-open in about a day if it is empty or does not have ‘food’ in it.  Leaves will re-open 3 or 4 times before they lose their ability to close.

DO feed your plant.  On its own it will successfully trap millipedes, earwigs, flies, and medium sized bugs.  Try putting one or two of these insects in the pot with the plant and watch Trapper catch them. 

DO give your plant plenty of sunshine.  Place Trapper in a sunny window, balcony, or patio.  In the inner surface is green move your plant to a place where it will get more light.

DO provide a humid environment.  Trapper will grow in full sun if the humidity is higher than 55%.  To increase humidity if your air is dry, leave your plant in the plastic box with the top closed, or plant Trapper in a terrarium.

DO give Trapper lots of water.  You need to try to duplicate the bog conditions where Trappers grow naturally.  Keep the soil wet at all times with distilled water or rainwater.  Avoid tap water as it often has natural minerals that will turn the leaves black.

DON’T leave Trapper in too much sun or he will cook.  Venus flytraps prefer summer daytime temperatures in the 80-90 degree Fahrenheit range with night temperatures about 10-20 degrees cooler.

DON’T worry about applying additional fertilizer to Trapper.  If ‘fed’ it will get all the nutrients from its ‘meals’ just as it does in nature.  A very dilute application of plant food once or twice during the summer is not harmful and may help the bulb grow bigger.  The bigger the bulb grows, the larger the traps will be.

DON’T feed your plant fatty food such as hamburger.  The leaves will turn black, rot, and die.

DON’T expect a leaf to live forever.  Each trap can only re-open about 4 times.  As old leaves die, new ones come up from the bulb to replace them.

DON’T panic when all the leaves blacken in the fall.  The bulb is going dormant.  Trapper needs to rest.  While dormant, put the pot outside, or in a place where it is cold, but will not freeze (35 – 40 degrees Fahrenheit).  With a little luck, you will be rewarded with larger traps in the spring and a display of delicate white flowers.