Carnivorous Plants

If you want to add a unique touch to your garden, carnivorous plants are bound to get attention. From the common Venus Flytrap to the Cobra plant, these exotics serve several purposes. Both these plants consume insects and can be of benefit to any garden in that way and in addition, they are a great conversational piece. The size of the plant you select will determine the amount of insects consumed, however, the entertainment they provide for both adults and children alike, is well worth the investment.

There are five different types of carnivorous plants. Of course the most popular and more widely known are the plants from the Venus Flytrap plant family. Snap traps rely on a mouth that close in around its pray, where the plant will eat whatever it catches.

When a fly or insect walks on the surface, this activates a hair trigger and causes closure, as the traps closes it fills with an enzyme solution, and then it will dissolve the proteins from the insect. These traps rely on prey falling into the plant and them being unable to escape.

Plants within the Venus Flytrap family have a large variety of different colored species found in various sizes.

Flypaper traps are among some of the coolest carnivorous plants. They are covered with dense, gland-tipped hairs and several tiny midge flies are stuck to the sticky hairs, which causes the insect to be enzymatically digested and absorbed by the plant. The type of secretion created by this particular plant can cause skin irritation to humans and therefore should be treated with caution.

Bladder traps plants are a fascinating subset of carnivorous plants. These plants function through the osmosis of water to create a suction within the body of the plant. This causes the walls to squeeze inward and explains their slightly concave appearance. Bladderworts are more commonly found underwater than above ground, which is another distinct characteristic from other carnivorous plants.

Another favorite carnivorous plant are the lobster-pot traps, and they come with a chamber that is easy to enter, and whose exit is either difficult to find or obstructed by inward-pointing bristles.

In the case of the corkscrew plant, the insides of the plant have downward pointing obstructions and a y-shaped leaf structure that prevents the escape of its prey.

If you do not wish to have a true carnivorous plant in your garden, but would like something with similar characteristics, there are several related species you may want to consider. These plants include the Brocchinia Roridula and members of the Martyniaceae species. They are not considered to be in the same classification as true carnivorous plants because they do not, attract, kill and digest prey.

Carnivorous plants should be placed where young children and babies cannot reach them. Even though they are considered relatively harmless to humans, the type of digestive enzymes they produce to break down their captured prey, should be avoided.