FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hi! I am a very new caretaker to a pretty pitiful looking VFT and am trying to learn how to properly care for it. I think I’ve repotted it successfully and believe it had root rot because the leaves were wilted and yellow and the roots were black. I have a tendency to rescue random plants from grocery store to try and save them and am pretty adept with orchids at this point and other random plants but this is my first VFT. I am hope I did right by trimming the black roots when I re potted it. I found mostly I was supposed to on the internet. Will the yellow wilted leaves make a come back or continue to drain the plant?

Congrats on being a new VFT grower! First, to answer your questions about the roots, I wouldn't cut them off, even if they are black. Your VFT, however, should be fine if you follow the following requirements:

1. Distilled water or low TDS water only.
2. Water VFT by putting it in a tray of distilled water.
3. Long Fibered Sphagnum Moss or Peat Moss for soil; make sure it contains no additives such as fertilizers
4. 6+ hours of direct sun
5. Goes dormant in winter

Hope your VFT thrives!

Alyse01 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 15, 2024 2:10 am I am hope I did right by trimming the black roots when I re potted it. I found mostly I was supposed to on the internet.

Live roots are thicker and have white tips on them. When in doubt, just leave them attached to the plant.

Alyse01 wrote: Will the yellow wilted leaves make a come back or continue to drain the plant?

They won't drain the plant; just the opposite. The flytrap will withdraw nutrients from the yellow leaves. Those leaves will die off, and the plant will grow new ones to replace them.