FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

I think we are finally past frost for the year, so I want to start moving my CPs outdoors for the summer. I have VFTs, sarrs, some sundews and neps.

• Should I transition them out slowly like with garden plants, by bringing them out during the warmest parts of the day then back inside at night? Or should I shove ‘em out the door and say good luck?

• When is warm enough for each type of plant to go out? I know the neps can’t handle the low temps yet, but I don’t know when it will be ok for them, or if it’s even ok for the others now.

Here’s my extended forecast:

I wouldn't move neps out yet. My rule of thumb is when it stays above 55 every night. They can tolerate 50 and below sometimes, but it just makes it easier for me at 55. For the rest, they should be fine to go outside. The only acclimation I would consider doing would be for sunlight. You can toss them out into the full sun and they might get a little sunburn or you can acclimate them to full sun over a couple of weeks. Once they go out though, you don't want to move them back inside. That will just produce more stress in them.

How would you recommend acclimating them to sunlight? As in, how many hours/day, building by how much?

If possible, start with a couple of hours of morning sunlight. Increase an hour or two every couple of days. Once you are up to 4 or 5 hours a day, you can move them to their permanent spot.

Or you can just toss them immediately in full sun ala ChefDean's approach. Tough love, he calls it.

I put mine under a table outside. every few days i move them east toward sunrise so they get more light.

ChefDean wrote: ↑Tue May 07, 2024 4:39 pm The above responses are OK, but for the faint of heart.
Toss your plants out into full sun right away, tough love, only the strong survive, we don't want weak plants!

I like this approach. Living in the PNW it is really hard to judge when the sun will be out. I put mine out a few weeks ago. It has rained most of the time but we also had some sun mixed in. It is finally supposed to break 80 this weekend with lots of sun starting tomorrow. They get pretty good morning sun for a few hours then up to 4 hours of late afternoon sun. Hopefully they have been out long enough now to be acclimated to the sun. They sure have taken a beating with all the rain we have had. I had to open the drain on the pool they are in to avoid root rot.

I forgot to ask about my U. longifolia and pings (Mexican and warm temperate). Do they even all go outside? And when? I have a cephalotus also, but that stays indoors, right? Oh, and what about all my little seed babies that have been germinating the last few months? Do they go out or stay in? If they go out, do they need some kind of special protection?

I’ll be honest, I’ll probably end up going with Chef’s method of acclimation, but I like to know what I’m supposed to do so I can willfully ignore it.

Hedonista wrote: ↑Wed May 08, 2024 4:46 pm I’ll be honest, I’ll probably end up going with Chef’s method of acclimation, but I like to know what I’m supposed to do so I can willfully ignore it.

Your plants won't thank you for that, but they'll eventually get over it. Imagine being staked to the ground at the beach on the first warm day of spring. Your skin won't look so pretty come sundown.