This is it.
> When I got it, it had 4 or 5 closer things on it, but a day after
They are called traps.
> sitting in the sun (with the lid on it) the leaves (the pintcher
> things) turned black, and it spread to the others. So I cut them off.
> Now a little new growth is starting, but they are turning black too.
>
> Could this be a disease? Now I have it at work under 24 hours of
> florecent light. I thought this would be a good thing, but it does
> not appear to be. There is about 3cm's of green left on the WHOLE
> plant.
Sunlight is the better choice. It provides a better spectrum of light. VFTs
are an outdoor plant and can be pretty hardy when they are kept in an
evironment as close to their native conditions as possible.
Could be a disease. Maybe mold or fungus from excessive humidity. If you
leave it in the original small container you purchased it in, and left the
hood on, it probably did get too hot inside the container if it was left out
in the sun. Also, the humidity remained soo high that fungus began to form.
I would remove the cover and let the plant sit as is and keep the soil moist
but not excessivley wet.
> Should I force into it's winter dormacy? Will it be OK if I leave it
> as is?
The plant may be entering its dormancy period already. You will notice this
when the traps form on short stems and remain close to the soil. They will
also grow much more slowly. At this point reduce the ammount of watering.
Water just enough to keep the soil damp, not saturated.
> So, since then, I have purchased two more, a better Terrarium, and
> some pete moss. They appear to be very happy. But, how long can I
> do this for?! The sides of the terrarium is all wet constantly, I
> can't see them. I assume they like it that way, but I do not want to
> make the same mistake I made with the first one.
Good choice.
I keep my VFTs in a pot about 12" round and 5" deep. The pot sits in a tray
about 1" deep that I keep full of water constantly. Mine have already
entered their dormancy period so I only fill the tray after it has
evaporated nearly dry. Excessive moisture at this point promotes fungus
growth which will overcome the growth of the plant during this slow growth
period.
>
> Anyone have any suggestions for me?
>
> I have been reading these articles for quite sometime now and only two
> or three people have mentioned Venus Fly Traps or Dionae M. Has
> everyone out grown these or something?
>
> I have a lot of questions and comments, so I look forward to hearing
> from all of you.
>
> Piece!
> -Dane
>
John Boehme
jandce@iglobal.net
http://www.iglobal.net/pub/JohnAndCe