FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

While doing some landscaping I stumbled upon a natural spring in my yard in a small area next to the street. Unfortunately the whole area is clay so I currently have my CPs still in their pots and sitting in some of the puddles where the water collects. What would be the least amount of work/materials to get them in the ground? I'm currently testing my purpureas and a few flavas with maybe 2 inches of peat added on top of the clay and they seem in good health since I planted them 2 weeks ago. This was unexpected so any tips, thoughts, help welcome.

Is that a cement wall separating the street from your lawn?

You might want to test the water before making any decisions.

I'm guessing there's a cement wall, including some large rocks laid into it, that separate the yard from the street. I don't own the place and no one in the neighborhood remembers how it's looked it the past, so it's just an educated guess. Just like I'm guessing all the dirt between the wall and the curb has been washed there, rain after rain, from the yard since the entire yard is on a decline.

What would I test the water for? I did put my plant meter in to test the pH, which came to just under 6. Only other thing I could think to test would be TDS, which i don't have a meter for.

TDS meters on amazon are fairly cheap we got ours for less than $20 (TD-4 unit)

grabbed that and one of the pre-mixed calibration solutions (can mix your own also if you have stuff onhand for it)

lowsmurf wrote:While doing some landscaping I stumbled upon a natural spring in my yard in a small area next to the street. Unfortunately the whole area is clay so I currently have my CPs still in their pots and sitting in some of the puddles where the water collects. What would be the least amount of work/materials to get them in the ground? I'm currently testing my purpureas and a few flavas with maybe 2 inches of peat added on top of the clay and they seem in good health since I planted them 2 weeks ago. This was unexpected so any tips, thoughts, help welcome.

This is a cool project. Where do you live? I live in North Carolina where the CPs grow wild and I believe I can plant CPs right in the ground if I want. I have moss and Sundews in the yard anyway. I also have springs.
I have been considering planting Purpura and some fly traps just to see. I wouldn't question my soil or water because moss and CPs wouldn't grow if the soil and water was not ok.
I would love to see native CP gardens pop up all over.

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I live just outside Portland, Oregon. We apparently have 2 species of Nepenthes that are native out here and they have statues of them in downtown Portland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepenthes_(sculpture). If I end up planting the whole area I'll have to add a few VFTs too for good measure . This is one of those times I wouldn't mind having a bag full of D Capensis seeds to seed the area, and test out the theory of sabotage that everyone jokes about.

I'm not sure what run-off water looks like compared to spring water. The water is seeping up through the clay and flooding the area, as well as going over the curb into the sewer non-stop. We don't water the yard next to the wall, so I can't see the water coming from that direction. The whole area is on an incline, since most of Portland metro is build on hills. And I do believe I was told there is a river/creek a mile or two away, if that makes any difference. It is down the the hill from us so not sure if the water has to do with that.

lowsmurf wrote:I live just outside Portland, Oregon. We apparently have 2 species of Nepenthes that are native out here and they have statues of them in downtown Portland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepenthes_(sculpture). If I end up planting the whole area I'll have to add a few VFTs too for good measure . This is one of those times I wouldn't mind having a bag full of D Capensis seeds to seed the area, and test out the theory of sabotage that everyone jokes about.

I'm not sure what run-off water looks like compared to spring water. The water is seeping up through the clay and flooding the area, as well as going over the curb into the sewer non-stop. We don't water the yard next to the wall, so I can't see the water coming from that direction. The whole area is on an incline, since most of Portland metro is build on hills. And I do believe I was told there is a river/creek a mile or two away, if that makes any difference. It is down the the hill from us so not sure if the water has to do with that.

I would check the water like Steve said. It is the only way to know if the water is ok

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You may want to read up some more before saying Nepenthes are native to the US.

Natural spring water is not pure water that would be suitable for CP's. Spring water comes up through the ground picking up whatever deposits of iron, minerals, salts and whatever else on the way up. All of this is removed through distilling to make distilled water which is why we used distilled and not spring water.

Now if by chance that's actually run off water, you can apply the same principles as the spring water, the water has run of from people's roofs, driveways, and yards. Water will pick up contaminants from running across the ground. You know most people fertilize their yards or use weed killers on the cracks of their driveways. Not to mention the fact it looks like a ditch, and how many people throw trash out the window of their cars. The nicotine from the cigarette butts will help deter pests, but it won't make the water any cleaner.

I commend your thought process for trying to beautify the area, but I would opt for putting in some nice plants that are actually native to the area. Just a thought.



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It wouldn't surprise me if where ever i read about the oregon 'nepenthes' actually confused nepenthes with sarracenia. I never found more information regarding it.

The water tested TDS from 110 where the water is at its highest point, all the way up to 140, lowest point where the water slowly pools until it runs over the curb and into the street.

The area where i planted the purpureas ran from 120-127. The area that tested highest I was planning on planting shrubs and other plants. Not just because of the high TDS, but due to lack of sunlight. The biggest problem is that the area is SATURATED with water to the point most plants will not survive in it, and of course not very much sunlight.

I know bamboo would love it over there, but keeping it in check is more than I'd like to deal with. I planted mint in that area and am starting to regret that already as it's managing to make its way towards my garden. I have a couple aronia berry shrubs i'm testing, as i've read they can tolerate wet feet. I'm also trying chameleon fish plant, which is very evasive just like the mint, and ground raspberry.

The purpurea still appear to be happy and putting out lots of new growth still.

Some pics of the growth progress so far. They don't appear detoured by their new home or the water quality.

lowsmurf wrote:Some pics of the growth progress so far. They don't appear detoured by their new home or the water quality.

Cool. Hope it keeps working for you.
BTW there is a miniature bamboo that grows in bogs. And there is a miniature Mondo Grass and also periwinkle will grow in wet soil.

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Just for fun you should try a darlingtonia or two. If you are unfamiliar with this plant it is a carnivorous (pitcher) plant that is native to Oregon. Sounds like you have almost ideal conditions for this plant.