FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

Hi ya'll, been a while.

I recently got a new fly trap. I am out of perilote and moss but I was reading online that zoo med's creature soil was a good alternative since it's made from silica sand, peat moss and carbon.

However I'm unsure if this is true. If it is a good alternative or not and was wondering if anyone else has used it and had good or bad results. I want to see if it's good to use first before trying anything.
Soil in question:

I dunno. The bag says the ingredients are peat moss, soil, sand, and carbon. To me, "soil" sends up a big red flag...it very well could have minerals in it and/or nutrients of some type. I would steer clear of it.

I'm definitely questioning too.

It's especially confusing because if you look at reviews. There's plenty that say people use it for their own carnivorous plants and it works out greatly for them too.

Thus why I'm unsure and wanted to see if anyone else has done it.

I spent the last of this week's money on my new guy. So repotting will have to wait til next week at best when I can get some proper peat moss and perlite if this stuff really ain't good to us.

Non-ideal substrates can work out okay, particularly in outdoor plants that are regularly flushed by rainwater. It might very well work! Particularly for nepenthes, which might appreciate any minerals. But I would go with something else. Your flytrap should be able to wait for a repot.

(edit: nutrients. Neps might appreciate any nutrients, in small amounts. I'm not certain if neps make use of soil minerals. They do tolerate more than most CPs, either way.)

AgentMaineMeta wrote: ↑Fri May 17, 2024 2:59 pm I spent the last of this week's money on my new guy. So repotting will have to wait til next week at best when I can get some proper peat moss and perlite if this stuff really ain't good to us.

Do you have an Ace Hardware store in the area? If so, pick up a bag of Sun Gro Black Gold Peat Moss (or Peat Moss Plus) and Perlite. They make for good carnivorous plant soil, and the total cost is under 20 bucks.