Venus Flytrap Blossom: Cut Off Or Not?

The flowers of the Venus flytrap are often in the shadow of the fascinating catch leaves. They are very decorative and provide seeds for propagation.

The flowers of the Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) often do not attract much attention, most of them know nothing at all about the beauty of the flower. We explain the optical advantages of the flowers and explain why they are especially important for the propagation of the Venus flytrap.

Venus flytrap flowers: appearance and timing of flowering

The flowers are only of secondary importance for many owners of a Venus flytrap, but they can certainly donate a high ornamental value. The hermaphroditic (male and female flower organs united in one flower) unfold at the tip of the mostly over 30 cm long flower stalks and bloom in the colors green and white. The diameter of the flowers is between two and three centimeters, which is an impressive size compared to the rest of the plant. The long flower stalks create a protective distance between the leaf traps and the blossoms, something that so many do pollinating insect saves life as it does not accidentally fall into the clutches of the Venus flytrap can.

The flowering time of the Venus flytrap is between the end of March and April. When the flower fades after a while, the seeds will mature and be ready for harvest.

Cut off Venus flytrap flowers?

The flower of the Venus flytrap is on the one hand very nice to look at, but like every generative organ of a plant, it consumes a lot of energy. This could be done at the expense of the leaf traps of your Venus flytrap, which may have to lose size as a result. If you do not want to do without the flowers of your Venus flytrap, we advise you to keep at least two plants. You prune one of them in the early stages of the development of the flower stalk so that numerous, powerful snap traps can develop. The second can be used for propagation purposes by simply preserving the flower.

Harvest Venus Flytrap Seeds

If the flowers have dried up, the time has usually come for the seeds to ripen. To harvest the seeds of your Venus Flytrap, you can either cut off the flower stems or wait for the seeds to fall out naturally. When removing the flowers, simply tap the seeds gently into a bowl or plate. If you decide on the second variant, simply place a bowl under the dried flower and wait until the seed falls out. Alternatively, you can tie a bag over the flower to collect the seeds.

Note: It is important that the seeds are stored in a dark and dry place immediately after harvest so that they retain their ability to germinate. Since seeds ripen in autumn and the optimal sowing date is in spring, direct sowing cannot be carried out and the seeds have to be stored over the winter.

Propagate Venus Flytrap and grow from seeds

There are two ways to propagate your Venus flytrap. On the one hand, you can raise offspring from seeds in a very classic way, on the other hand, there is the possibility of division. You can find detailed instructions for both methods in our special article on Propagating the Venus Flytrap.

If you want to Care of the Venus Flytrap want to find out, you will definitely find what you are looking for in our special article.