This Season Almost Broke Me

Published on 15.07.2025

This season was supposed to be the best yet for my Venus flytraps. I was excited for those summer reds, the fat traps, the showstoppers I could share with you. But you know what? It didn’t happen.

The Mistake with Fertilizer

I made the mistake of trying a friend’s “miracle” fertilizer, hoping for even bigger traps. Instead, some of my flytraps overfed themselves to death, others stayed pale, and the colours I wanted never came.

A Cold Spring and Bad Timing

Spring was too cold for too long this year. The nights stayed chilly, and even the days weren’t warm enough for the plants to wake up properly after winter dormancy. I was waiting for better weather, but by the time I started repotting, it was already late, and the plants were stressed before they even got going.

Pests Joined the Party

As if that wasn’t enough, spider mites showed up uninvited, and fungus gnats settled in pots that just wouldn’t dry fast enough. I ended up repotting my entire collection three times. Three. Times. I was sweaty, dirty, frustrated. I seriously considered shutting everything down and throwing my collection away.

Inspection from the Central Institute

In the middle of all this chaos, I also had an inspection from the Central Institute for Supervising and Testing in Agriculture (ÚKZÚZ). They came to check my growing conditions, plant health, and how I handle my plants for sale.

It was a bit stressful to have an official inspection during a season when I felt like everything was going wrong. But the good news? I passed. I received a protocol as a professional grower, confirming that I meet all requirements, and I am officially qualified to grow and sell Venus flytraps in accordance with regulations.

It felt good to have this recognition and confirmation that despite my frustrations and the tough season, the way I grow and care for my plants is professional and compliant. It gave me a much-needed boost to continue and focus on preparing a healthy batch of plants for the upcoming season.

The Plants for Sale Are Doing Fine

Fortunately, I keep backups of almost every cultivar, and even when some plants went down, there were survivors to carry on. And while many of my personal mother pots look rough, the plants I have for sale haven’t been affected at all – they’re kept separately, and honestly, they’re looking much better than my personal collection right now.

A Silver Lining: A Big Update is Coming Soon!

Here’s the silver lining in this messy season: many of my Dionaea cultivars divided into a million pieces while they were struggling. So even though they’re not pretty this summer, I will have a huge update in autumn with lots of strong plants for sale.

Lessons From a Tough Venus Flytrap Season

This season taught me that pushing too hard for perfection can backfire. Venus flytraps know what they need better than we do sometimes and that so many factors can affect the health of our flytraps. Cold weather, bad timing, wrong experiments, pests… it all piles up.

If your season isn’t going perfectly either, you’re not alone. It’s okay to feel disappointed, and it’s okay to take a breath before trying again. Sometimes, it’s enough just to keep them alive for the next season. The colours will come again.

Stay snappy 🌱

— Peter