News »

Fly Trap

We buy a Venus Fly Trap to catch flies right? well sometimes sure, but they’re not the most effective of fly traps to be fair, most people who buy a Venus Fly Trap do so as they admire the plant (or to be anal, the herb) for what it is.

While you may have this idea that if you own a Venus Fly Trap then you will never have flies in your house, I’m afraid you may be mistaken.

Each plant has up to around 7 leaves per crown or rhizome, any more and what you’re looking at is really 2 plants.

When a leaf catches a fly it will be closed for several days, unable to catch any more. Once opened it can repeat this step around 3-4 times before that leaf dies off, and is replaced by another, a process which can take days to weeks.

In the hot summer months we are looking at hundreds of flies passing though our houses and lots of small midges in the evenings. While your plant may catch a few, if you want to get rid of the damn fly permanently, you may need to look for a chemical or more commercial fly trap.

Chemical Fly Trap

Some chemical fly traps can catch flies from around 100m2, which is a fantastically efficient system. These work using a protein attractant and cost around £15.

These last around 10 weeks which is perfect for the summer months and is surely more efficient than a plant.

The use of chemical fly traps in areas where there are lots of flies in addition to the Venus Flytraps is a benefit as you are far less likely to see your plant catching flies. This extends the life of your plant by a huge amount.