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Capitalist scum.

Damn that's steep.

Don't normally buy items but treating myself to these badboys: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bose-SoundLink ... JVSP1DHXGS

Got a pot of Venus Fly Traps from Ikea :wub:

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M8 some of those are a bit dead already but take my advice and basically DO NOT water it. And take it out of that plastic they seem to insist on putting plants in these days or it will rot.

Seriously only spray it with a little water when it looks limp.

Also remove dead leaves.

And put it by a window.

Green Gecko wrote:
Seriously only spray it with a little water when it looks limp.

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Well, most "jungle" type plants are actually pretty arid and need to drain so when people water them all the time they get waterlogged and rot because they shouldn't really live in pots. Mostly from water sitting in and around the stem.

It's better to spray the top layer of soil than drench them because normally there is still plenty of moisture at the bottom of the pot.

Green Gecko wrote: plenty of moisture at the bottom.

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I appreciate the Jim Carey gif though even if he is a bum now.

Mafro wrote:Got a pot of Venus Fly Traps from Ikea

Still the best animatronic ever.

Green Gecko wrote:M8 some of those are a bit dead already but take my advice and basically DO NOT water it. And take it out of that plastic they seem to insist on putting plants in these days or it will rot.

Seriously only spray it with a little water when it looks limp.

Also remove dead leaves.

And put it by a window.

Thank god you said this because I was just going to leave them rotting in a dark cupboard in the plastic packaging.

Are the ones that are purple and saggy dead then?

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Mafro wrote:
Green Gecko wrote:M8 some of those are a bit dead already but take my advice and basically DO NOT water it. And take it out of that plastic they seem to insist on putting plants in these days or it will rot.

Seriously only spray it with a little water when it looks limp.

Also remove dead leaves.

And put it by a window.

Thank got you said this because I was just going to leave them rotting in a dark cupboard in the plastic packaging.

Are the ones that are purple and saggy dead then?

Yes they're dead or dying. Pull them out when they are completely black or airborne fungus attacks those parts and it gets to the stem from there. It just becomes food for fungus.

It's all about keeping the stem dry or moist but never wet.

Cos sci fi and stuff people associate carnivorous plants with bogs and lots of mist and stuff but forget that plants actually hate that environment and they just rot.

The trick is those environments can get "wet" and steamy yes, but they're also in state of getting wet and then almost completely drying out again, because of the heat. Humidity isn't the same as wet.

They are similar to succulent plants in that they retain a good amount of moisture in the waxy leaf.

In nature there's both heat and natural waterways underground to get rid of excess moisture. Plastic pots basically reverse this.

So to avoid it rotting in a pot like that (no drainage, high humidity because well plastic) you need to water it less. Stick a kebab skewer or lollipop stick in the soil and only water it when you pull it out and it isn't moist or wet to the touch anymore.

It is better for a plant like that to be a bit thirsty then always "well watered". Obviously water it more in summer but in the winter the water just sits and stagnates.

If it is wet around the stem (not the roots although you also get root rot from sitting water at the bottom - make sure all the water can get out the bottom and don't leave sitting on a bowl or dish) it'll wither away silently until the leaves just fall away, the leaves are the last thing to go in an evergreen plant. It always happens to small leafy plants in the past that I watered all the time.

They need a lot of light. Like greenhouse amounts of light. Not like houseplants, ferns etc which don't.

At the same time a windowsill can be drafty, they hate cold so you can put bubble wrap by a window or something. You can also help keep the soil cycling between wet and dry and not sitting wet with a heatmatt for about £6.

Most of my plants I will water them briefly and let them drain out in the sink. Don't assume soil is dry just because it's been a few days. People water plants to death as well as not water them at all.

The leaves of a Venus fly trap are very thin and so exposure to fungus they will just disintegrate in s matter of days.

The dead leaves are probably due to ikea having no idea and most big shops in general.

Also you can feed it but don't do it for fun too much, it wastes more of the plants energy than it gains closing the jaws which can also kill it.

Also don't feed it ham :capnscotty:

Enjoy your new friend xoxoxox

The pot has holes in the bottom and it's sitting in another pot for drainage.

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That's all well and good but I have killed other arid or wet/dry cycle plants pretty much always comes down to oversaturation rather than the opposite which people generally presume their plant is too dry and needs watering constantly. Then it dies.

So I exaggerate and say basically hardly water it.

It's worth getting a terracotta because it breathes, if you want it as a pet :wub:

Mafro's plant

£1.82

I had it on digital download since launch but wanted it physical so it looks nice on the shelf

£15.00

I had to post something Apple, I might get Tropico on the iPad, has anyone on here got it or played it?

Wrathy wrote:I bought some pokemon cards

https://i.imgur.com/Y4oKccn.jpg

they cost £183.26

You're sponsored now? Does that mean you're, like, going pro? (Is it possible to make a living playing TCG?)

Mafro wrote:Thank god you said this because I was just going to leave them rotting in a dark cupboard in the plastic packaging.

Don't smash your plants to pieces with a big hammer, that will kill them. Subscribe for more pro plant tips.

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I forgot to say the traps generally die after digesting their thing or die after a while anyway, it goes through this cycle of regrowing those.

I'm just practing for my cbeebies presentation

You will thank me all later when the plant retaliates and mafro disappears

Karl wrote:
Wrathy wrote:I bought some pokemon cards

https://i.imgur.com/Y4oKccn.jpg

they cost £183.26

You're sponsored now? Does that mean you're, like, going pro? (Is it possible to make a living playing TCG?)

sadly not, at this stage in my career the sponsorship is more of a status thing than something which provides tangible benefits for me. A new team being sponsored at all is pretty good and our roster is one of the strongest in the UK, so we have a lot of potential to grow with it which is the real intention.

Even at the highest level I don't think it's a good life playing TCG. A lot of them have to have content creation (youtube/twitch/articles) or sell cards/run Leagues to stay afloat, both of which aren't really for me right now. I am sort of thinking about streaming in a few months but it's a lot of commitment and effort to do to the standards I would expect... and I also hate playing the TCG Online game, which is a big hurdle.

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