As if the Northwest February sun shining isn’t enough to get kids and adults out to enjoy the weather, we were inspired by “The Fairly Odd Parents,” the second most popular animated show on Nickelodeon, after “Sponge Bob Square Pants.”
The show is about the adventures of Timmy Turner, a 10-year-old boy who is granted wishes by his fairy God parents, Cosmo and Wanda. Following an episode, where Timmy asks to be turned into a fly and is snatched up by none other than a Venus Fly trap, my son, age 7, and I went out to find one of these carnivorous plants.
Venus fly traps (scientific name: Disionaea muscipula) can be found at local plant nurseries, although they originated on the coast lines of North Carolina. While the plants require a medium amount of care and prefer live houseflies, dried flies also are a preferable diet for these amazing life-forms.
The open leaves of the Venus fly traps have sensitive hairs that snap shut in less than a second when objects touch them, however, if stones or non-nutritive items are trapped, the leaves will reopen in about 12 hours to spit out objects that won’t be ingested. The plants grow well in a terrarium environment, similar to a Southern bog.
While visiting the conservatory at Wright Park in Tacoma, in quest of a “real” Venus fly trap, we learned the insectivorous plants are inhabitants there, although to see one live would require a return visit in April, as the plants are stowed away in hothouses until then.
Meanwhile, we were treated to viewing the Pitcher plant, another famous carnivorous cultivar. The Pitcher plant, or Sarracenia, is native to the South Eastern United States and prefers a diet of fire ants, but also will dine on crickets, grasshoppers, bees and wasps. The plants emit nectar that attracts bugs and once the insects smell the nectar they fall inside the flowers into an inescapable trap from the outward flowers into the pitcher shaped plant. There’s some plant food for thought.
Send your thoughts, questions and comments to Jennifer@genuinejenny.com.