At Home Living 090217

Saturday, September 2, 2017 An advertising feature of The Topeka Capital-Journal

home.cjonline.com lawn and garden

Fall checklist Outdoor tasks to do before winter arrives page 6 n Planting bulbs for spring color, page 2 n Updates help sell home, page 4 n Courtyards make a comeback, page 8

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Plant bulbs in fall for colorful spring display Ariel Whitely

Fall native plant sale makes debut this month The Topeka Capital-Journal

arielw@ksu.edu

Late September through October is an excellent time to plant your favorite spring-flowering bulbs. Crocuses, tulips and daffodils need to develop their roots in the fall and must meet a chilling requirement (12 weeks below 40 degrees) over the winter in order to bloom in the spring.

To ensure a good start for your spring bulbs, you’ll need an appropriate planting site, good soil, nutrients and appropriate watering.

Planting guide

To begin, choose a planting site with partial shade to full sun. An ideal soil is a sandy loam, but even poor soils can be used if organic matter (peat moss, compost or aged bark) is mixed in. If you have a heavy clay soil, you can amend it by mixing one-third to one-half organic material into the soil.

Bulbs require good drainage and soil aeration for proper development. Your soil’s pH should be between 6.0-7.0 and you should fertilize according to a soil test.

Planting depth is the distance from the bottom of the bulb to the top of the soil. To determine how deep you need to plant your bulbs, variety and size are the factors to consider. Tulips and hyacinths should be planted about 6 inches deep, while daffodils are 6 to 8 inches deep. Bulbs should be planted two to three times as deep as their width. Larger bulbs should be spaced 4 to 6 inches apart, while smaller bulbs should be spaced 1 to 2 inches apart.

Once your bulbs are placed in their holes, replace half the soil and add water. This will settle the soil around the bulbs and provide good bulb-to-soil contact. After that, add the remaining soil and water again.

This fall you won’t see any top growth, but the bulb’s roots are developing to put out spring

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For a beautiful display next spring, be sure to plant tulip bulbs this fall. The best time to plant bulbs is late September through October. flowers. This means it is important to keep the soil moist, but not soggy. After the first frost, it’s a good idea to add mulch to prevent smaller bulbs from being worked out of the soil by temperature fluctuations.

Looking good

For the design aspect of planting bulbs, they tend to look best in groups. Clumping or massing bulbs formally, geometrically or in a naturalistic way all have a stunning visual impact.

The varieties to choose from are virtually endless, but there are a few that stand out. n Crocus is a cup-shaped flower in bright purple, yellow and lavender. n Grape hyacinths appear as small, purple grape-like clusters on small plants, which look great in large numbers. n Galanthus, or snowdrops,

have a dainty, drooping white flower with green tips. n Anemone is a low-growing, star-shaped flower that makes a perfect ground cover or can be forced to bloom in small pots. n Scilla, also known as wood squill, is blue and white with a delicate scent. It spreads quickly. n Tulips, the most familiar spring bulb, are classified by height and bloom times. Botanical tulips are the first to bloom in the spring. They are valued for their varied shapes, unusual foliage and gorgeous colors. Emperor, or fosteriana, is a mid-sized tulip with large flowers, and kaufmanniana is low-growing and resembles a water lily.

Hybrid tulips are single-early and double-early tulips that bloom in mid-April. Giant Darwin hybrids are among the most popular tulips blooming April through May, with vibrant colors on strong stems. Peony flowering tulips are

double, long-lasting late-bloomers that resemble a peony flower.

Another May bloomer is the parrot tulip, with exotic large flowers and fringed edges. n Another popular bulb noted for its profusion of color and shape is the narcissus, commonly called daffodil. These bloom in April, make great cut flowers and are used in the garden for early color. The most popular daffodil is the King Alfred.

Bulbs offer the perfect opportunity to create vibrant designs amid the brown and gray of early spring.

Although patience is required to tend to a plant you can’t see for many months, the results will make the effort worth it.

Don’t forget to mix and match colors and bloom times for a spring bed your neighbors are sure to envy.

Ariel Whitely is the horticulture agent for Shawnee County Research and Extension.

For the first time ever, the Grassland Heritage Foundation is having a fall native plant sale. The organization traditionally has a spring sale, and it’s adding another opportunity for the public to purchase native plants.

The fall sale will be from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Sept. 14 and 21 at Cottin’s Farmers Market, behind Cottin’s Hardware and Rental at 1832 Massachusetts St. in Lawrence.

Each plant costs $4.

All plants are locally grown Kansas natives and guaranteed to be free of neonicotinoid insecticides (neonics), which can harm bees and other pollinators.

A list of plants available at the sale will be posted on the GHF Facebook page after Sept. 6. Unlike its spring sale, the organization won’t take advance orders from GHF members. All plants will be available on a firstcome, first-served basis.

The Grassland Heritage Foundation is a grassroots organization working to preserve prairies in eastern Kansas through education, stewardship and land protection. Founded in 1975, the group has successfully preserved native tallgrass prairie in Johnson and Jackson counties.

Through its workshops, events and outings, it has taught thousands of children and adults about the tallgrass prairie ecosystem.

Proceeds from the sale will be used for prairie preservation and education efforts.

For information about GHF, prairie preservation and the fall native plant sale, visit grasslandheritage. org or its Facebook page, email grasslandheritage@gmail.com or call (785) 840-8104.

homes.cjonline.com | The Topeka Capital-Journal | Saturday, September 2, 2017 | 3

As phones get smarter, garden apps get better

By Dean Fosdick The Associated Press

Gardening apps are getting better all the time, supplanting manuals and textbooks as the way people dig for information. Many university extension services are developing the digital aids to extend outreach to clients.

“Extension apps provide reliable, research-based information,” said Christopher Enroth, an Extension educator with the University of Illinois, who evaluates gardening apps for their relevancy, customization and ease of use. “I’ve examined a few apps developed by various companies that are simply another gateway to their products.

“Other various interest groups have apps that give ‘all natural’ advice that is

based more on opinion or beliefs. It always helps to have a critical eye.”

The word “app” is short for application — software designed for use on smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices.

Purdue University Extension specialists, for example, have created a series of diagnostic apps for gardeners that provide solutions to dozens of problems for hundreds of plants. This lowcost Plant Doctor app suite focuses on perennial and annual flowers, tomatoes, turf grass and trees. (purdueplantdoctor.com) “Every year, homeowners invest millions of dollars in their landscaping materials and due to insect diseases and sometimes a lack of experience, problems come up,” said Janna Beckerman, a Purdue Extension plant

Tip of the Week: Wrap up

Tired of having your wrapping paper topple to the floor or block the closet door when you go to retrieve it? Keep it corralled by placing it in a garment or large garbage bag.

Source: heloise via goodhousekeeping.com

Dean Fosdick/via The Associated Press

The mobile app Like That Garden identifies plants or butterflies from pictures taken from the phone camera. disease specialist and content specialist for the apps.

“This is an affordable way to fix those problems. You just pull it (mobile device) out of your pocket and have

answers right away.”

A new app from Toca Boca called Toca Lab: Plants aims to plant seeds of interest in gardening for children. It features a digi-

tal botanical laboratory that helps kids discover scores of plants with differing personalities. It also enables them to create new species. (tocaboca.com/app/tocalab-plants) “We wanted to create something that would be fun,” said Bjorn Jeffery, Toca Boca chief executive officer.

“We hope that the mystery, science and humor in the app combine to ignite kids’ joy of discovery, and empower them to seek out other resources to learn more about botany.”

PlantSnap is a recent entry in the expanding field of apps intended to identify unknown plants and flowers. (See also Plantifier, NatureGate, Leafsnap, Like That Garden, PlantNet, ID Weeds.) It instantly identifies plants and weeds from a photo, and along the way is

producing what its creators claim is the world’s largest plant database.

“It works well for gardeners and academics, and anyone,” said Eric Ralls, chief executive officer of PlantSnap. “We want anyone on the planet to be able to recognize any plant on the planet. So far, we have 315,000 in our database.” (plantsnap.net) Other gardening-related apps worth considering (all those listed below are free): ■■For landscaping: iScape, Rain Harvest.

■■For diagnosis: Garden Compass, Plant Health, My Garden Answers.

■■For plant guides: GKH Gardening Companion, GardenMinder, GrowIt! ■■For naturalists: Audubon Bird Guide, Insect Encyclopedia, Bee Smart Pollinator Gardener.

4 | Saturday, September 2, 2017 | The Topeka Capital-Journal | homes.cjonline.com

Low-cost, simple updates boost home’s selling power

By Liz Montano

Special to The Capital-Journal

It may have been a great house to start with, but now you’re thinking it may be time to list it. Before you put the property on the market, though, consider sprucing up the old place.

According to Topeka Home Builders Association CEO Ivan Weichert, you can give your home a facelift without draining your bank account by doing a few fairly simple things.

Weichert recently shared suggestions to help homeowners get the most response from potential buyers and the best return on their investment.

Q: What are some key things a homeowner can do to help sell their house?

Weichert: One important thing is to maximize livable space.

Q: For example?

Weichert: For starters, most families today seldom use a formal dining room.

Consider turning it into viable living space by creating an office. Once considered a luxury, home offices are now more of Weichert a necessity.

An increasing number of families have more than one person employed and more people are working from home.

Q: So staging a formal dining room as an office would help people see how it could better fit their lifestyles. That makes sense and it doesn’t seem like it would be an expensive makeover.

Weichert: The main thing is to have good lighting, sufficient electrical outlets and provide internet connections. It doesn’t have to be

a converted dining room, of course. It can be any lesserused part of your home. And if you have an unfinished basement, finishing it is the most economical way of creating significantly more usable living space, which adds value to your home.

Q: Open concept is all the rage today. If you have a home with designated rooms, is knocking down a wall likely to add value? Or, do you think open concept is a passing trend?

Weichert: I think it’s a trend that’s here to stay. The idea of a formal dining room or a formal living room, for that matter, doesn’t hit it anymore. They’re greatly under-used spaces. If a wall can be moved without impacting the structure, it’s a good idea and a real way to add value.

Q: What else can help attract buyers?

Weichert: Replacing old windows. Most homes built before 1970 likely need them. Old windows are the major cause of energy loss and energy efficiency is always a selling point.

By the way, if your home has storm windows, they need to be replaced. Storm windows were installed in older homes to specifically help reduce energy loss. So, if you have storm windows, you know your windows are inefficient.

If your roof is seven to 10 years old and you can afford to replace it, you should.

Buyers like to know that’s something they won’t have to deal with. Replacing the roof may not make you extra money, but you’ll get back the money you spent and it will make the house more enticing to potential buyers.

Q: What about remodeling the kitchen and bathroom?

Aren’t they a couple of the

biggest ways to add value to your home Weichert: If you don’t go overboard.

Don’t try to make it into your dream kitchen. It may not be the buyer’s dream kitchen. But do give it a facelift.

Replace handles and lighting fixtures. If countertops are old, consider replacing them.

It’s easier than you might think. By the way, it isn’t necessary to spend the money on granite or quartz.

There are high-quality, attractive laminate countertops available today.

Modern appliances are a good idea. And, if you have wallpaper, remove it.

Same with the bathrooms. Wallpaper and carpeting need to go. There are good, low-cost, nice-looking solutions for replacing bad flooring. And a fresh coat of neutral paint goes a long way.

TOPEKA HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION

Address: 1505 S.W. Fairlawn Road Information about membership or upcoming events: Visit thba.com; email thba@thba. com; or call (785) 273-1260.

Q: What about enhancing curb appeal?

Weichert: One of the most inexpensive ways to increase curb appeal is landscaping.

Buy a few plants from a home improvement store and put them in your yard.

And don’t forget a fresh coat of paint for the outside of your house.

That can make all the difference.

Liz Montano is a freelance writer from Topeka. She can be reached at (785) 230-3907 or newsbizliz@ gmail.com.

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Kohler

Parents can help teach their children to modify their behavior to help save water, but replacing old fixtures with high-efficiency ones, like this dual flushing toilet, also helps.

Teaching kids to save water easy as 1, 2, 3 Installing new water-saving fixtures helps

By Ed Del Grande Tribune News Service

Q: Dear Ed: Our children are getting older, where they can be independent in the bathroom. We want to teach them to develop good water-saving habits. What kid-friendly water-saving ideas can you recommend for our family?

— Becky and Joe, Rhode Island

A: To start, I recommend upgrading to high-efficiency fixtures.

Quality high-efficiency plumbing fixtures can offer sleek, modern designs and good flow performance, while helping to lower water use.

You can look into installing these three watersaving bathroom fixtures and letting your older children be part of the “fun” by teaching them efficient ways to use them.

■■One: Upgrade your faucets with water-efficient aerators, and teach the kids to turn the tap on and off while brushing teeth.

■■Two: Install a kidfriendly adjustable personal shower and slide bar in place of taking baths.

■■Three: Replace your old toilet with a high-efficiency dual-flushing toilet.

Kids love to press buttons.

Teach them the No. 1 button (half flush) is for No. 1 and the No. 2 button (full flush) is for No. 2.

Master contractor/plumber Ed Del Grande is known internationally as the author of the book “Ed Del Grande’s House Call,” the host of TV and internet shows, and a LEED green associate. Visit eddelgrande.com or write to eadelg@cs.com. Always consult local contractors and codes.

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Check it off

Outdoor tasks to do this fall What you do now may help next year’s garden, lawn

By Jan Biles

The Topeka Capital-Journal

As fall approaches, homeowners typically start making a to-do list of lawn and garden tasks they want to get done before colder weather arrives.

At the top of many lists is tending to turf.

Brett Blackburn, president of Blackburn Nursery Inc., 4100 S.W. 40th St., says the first couple of weeks in September is the best time for overseeding, core aerating and making renovations to a lawn because temperatures, particularly at night, are beginning to cool.

Overseeding is when grass seed is planted directly into existing turf, without tearing up the soil or turf. Core aeration perforates the soil with small holes to reduce soil compaction, improve drainage, break up thatch and help nutrients move into the soil.

If renovating a lawn, Blackburn recommends renting a verticutter or slicer, which can cut into the thatch without damaging the grass, making removal of dead thatch and the creation of a seed bed easier. After broadcasting seed over the area, guide the verticutter or slicer across the area again to press the seeds into the ground.

As temperatures begin to cool in September, homeowners also should readjust the blade on their mowers to cut grass shorter, he said. Turf should be cut to 2 to 3 inches.

Jennifer Owens, who works at Jackson’s Greenhouse and Garden Center,

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When temperatures begin to cool, start cutting your grass shorter. Turf should be mowed to 2 to 3 inches in the fall.

1933 N.W. Lower Silver Lake Road, recommends putting down a lawn food with iron by late September. She said the product allows the turf to gather nutrients for use over the winter.

“If you only fertilizer one time a year, the most important time is early September,” Blackburn noted.

Pre-emergence herbicides can be applied in October and November to prevent crabgrass seed from germinating and stop seedlings from emerging in the spring. Dandelions, henbit and chickweed also can be controlled with a broadleaf herbicide while seedlings are young.

And what do you do with all those leaves falling on your lawn?

Cameron Rees, general manager at Skinner Garden Store, 4237 N.W. Lower Silver Lake Road, said “chop up the leaves” with your lawnmower. Leave them on the lawn or rake up and deposit them in a

compost pile.

“It’s free mulch,” Rees said.

Garden care

Don’t wash the green from your thumb just yet.

Owens said fall crops, including green beans, radishes, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and lettuce, can be planted until midSeptember and harvested through November.

Blackburn said September is a “great time to add to your landscape,” particularly trees, shrubs, roses and ornamental grasses.

Also, plants are often less expensive in the fall.

Fall also is a good time to remove weeds from your garden so they won’t go to seed, according to the Shawnee County Extension Office. As plants dieback for the winter, remove and destroy the foliage to reduce insects and disease.

Gardens can be tilled in the fall and organic matter FALL continues on 7

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Apples typically begin to ripen in September. After picking, the fruit should be stored in a cool place to extend its freshness.

Fall: Know when to mow and plant

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Continued from 6

or compost added to improve soil structure.

To-do list

The Shawnee County Extension Office posts a year-round gardening calendar at its website, shawnee.k-state.edu. Here are some of the tasks the Extension experts say should be done in the next couple of months.

September ■■Begin picking apples and pears and storing them in a cool place to extend their freshness.

■■Harvest pumpkins when flesh is completely orange and harvest winter squash when rind is hard enough to puncture with a fingernail.

■■Herbs can be dug from the garden and placed in pots for indoor use during the winter months.

■■Remove small tomatoes from their vines to increase the late development of more mature fruits.

■■Plant spring flowering bulbs, such as tulips and daffodils. This also can be

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Cabbage and other crops can be planted in September for a late-fall harvest. To add color to your landscape, add a few chrysanthemums.

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Early September is a good time to fertilizer one’s lawn. done in October.

■■Dig, divide or plant peonies.

■■Divide perennials, especially spring bloomers. Remove seed heads to prevent reseeding in the garden.

■■Plant chrysanthe-

mums for fall color.

Hand-pick bagworms from trees to reduce problems in the future.

■■Bring houseplants in before temperatures drop into the 50s.

■■Clean and wash houseplants before moving

them indoors to reduce the occurrence of insects.

October ■■After a light frost, dig sweet potatoes and cure them for two weeks in a warm location. Then store them in a cool, dry location for longer keeping.

■■Make notes of suc-

cesses and failures in the garden for next year.

■■Pick up and discard fruit that has fallen from trees to reduce disease next year.

■■Pot bulbs for indoor forcing.

■■After a light frost, dig canna, gladiolus, dahlias and other tender bulbs for

winter storage.

■■Once the leaves have fallen, transplant trees and shrubs.

■■Prune broken, dead and diseased branches from trees.

■■Avoid pruning spring flowering shrubs, such as lilac and forsythia, to ensure spring flowers.

How to avoid those first-time homebuyer mistakes

By Amanda Bell Angie’s List

Buying your first home brings a lot of emotions. With so many considerations and processes to navigate, it’s easy to get tripped up in details and make costly errors. Here’s how to avoid some common missteps: n Don’t skip home loan qualifications. Once you decide to buy a home, it’s tempting to start touring properties right away.

Instead, make your first stop a lending office. Figure out how much you qualify to borrow before wasting your own time and

that of a seller. You don’t want to sign a contract only to discover the bank won’t loan you the necessary funds. n Know what you can afford.

Many first-timers fail to budget properly, often confusing what they can afford with what lenders tell them they qualify to borrow. If you haven’t already, make a list of your monthly expenses before settling on a house budget. n Don’t focus too much on the flaws.

It’s fun to dream about the items on your wish list, but some first-timers have a hard time

compromising to meet their budgets. Don’t let outdated features steer you away from a house that otherwise meets your criteria.

On the other hand, don’t compromise on your must-haves. n Don’t fall blindly in love.

You think you find “the one” and immediately develop an emotional connection to it, never mind the leaky roof and creaky floors. You jump to put in an offer, but your real estate agent urges you to reconsider.

At that point, take heed. Falling head over heels for a home can blind you to its true value or flaws that should be deal-breakers.

n Don’t wait too long.

Today’s housing market is competitive. If you spend too much time debating whether to put in an offer, a quicker buyer may snatch up the house you’ve been eyeing. n Don’t skip the home inspection.

Once a seller accepts your offer, you may be tempted to fastforward the process and skip the home inspection, but it’s important to know if the house is in solid shape. Aside from helping to identify any major structural flaws, a home inspection can help you budget for future maintenance issues. Consider it

a “new home” orientation. n Keep resale in mind.

It might seem preposterous to think about selling a house you haven’t yet purchased, but experts recommend planning ahead. Many buyers don’t factor in features that could affect a home’s resale value, like number of bedrooms or whether it has a garage or basement, or if the home will suit their future needs, which is a common mistake.

Even if you’re not planning to have children, a home’s location within a coveted school district often leads to a higher resale value down the line.

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Original ‘outdoor rooms’ get a new look

By Melissa Kossler Dutton The Associated Press

The trend toward outdoor living, which uses comfy seating, bright rugs and weatherproof art to extend the al fresco season at home, is bringing new attention to a centuries-old architectural feature: the courtyard.

“It’s the original outdoor room,” said Philip Weddle, principal architect of Weddle Gilmore Black Rock Studio in Scottsdale, Ariz. “Courtyards are as much about enriching the indoor spaces as creating amazing outdoor spaces. That blurring of the boundary between indoors and out makes the experience of each space richer.”

Courtyards — a staple in Roman, Middle Eastern and ancient Chinese architecture — are becoming popular in homes throughout the United States, builders and architects say.

As they have for thousands of years, courtyards offer a safe and private area for families and guests to gather. In urban areas especially, such secluded outdoor space is rare. Courtyards increase the amount of living space in a home. And when designed right, they can create a cooling retreat in warm climates.

Improvements in retractable glass walls and sliding doors have helped make them more feasible.

“That technology has really improved over the last decade,” Weddle said. “It really does allow you to open interior space to a courtyard more easily.”

People are accessing that outdoor space to cook, dine, entertain or just relax, Weddle said.

He’s designed small courtyards that connect to a master bath and include an outdoor shower.

“Courtyards come in all shapes and sizes,” he said.

Builder Nilay Bhatt, president of Dani Homes in Columbus, Ohio, also sees more Midwestern customers choosing courtyards.

“It’s an element of outdoor living.”

And in older suburban neighborhoods in Atlanta, Ed Castro Landscape has helped clients add

Bill Timmerman/Weddle Gilmore

An entry courtyard, with plantings, paving stones and glass walls, increases the curb appeal of this home.

Sara Donaldson/Bonick Landscaping Ed Castro Landscape Inc. via AP

Homeowners are creating courtyards in front of houses by adding plantings and paving stones.

Courtyards offer a safe and private area for families and guests to gather, as well add to the living space of a home. courtyards to existing homes, said Hannah Seaton, a senior landscape design consultant with the firm.

“They’re trying to turn an area of their property into a private place,” she said.

Luckily, the footprints of many older homes include nooks and hidden spots that lend themselves to courtyards, Seaton said.

In other places, homeowners are creating courtyards in front of houses by adding plantings and paving stones. That can increase curb appeal, reduce the amount of water-guzzling lawn and showcase a water feature or piece of sculpture, said Tanya Wilson of Bonick Landscaping in Irving, Texas.

Front-yard courtyards can be casual (benches and gravel walkways) or formal (statues, fancy lighting and fountains). The key, Wilson said, is selecting a look that matches the house’s architecture.

“It’s a nice transition from the street to the front door,” she said.

“It can feel more welcoming.”

But the appeal of a courtyard doesn’t stop at the door, said Missy Henriksen, vice president of public affairs for the National Association of Landscape Professionals in Herndon, Va. The courtyard’s purpose is to connect the home’s interior with the outdoors, she said.

“Most landscape features bring the indoors out. With the

Sara Donaldson/Bonick Landscaping

A gravel courtyard in front of a home includes a boulder water feature and adds curb appeal. popularity of outdoor living, we think of landscapes as extensions of our homes,” she said. “Courtyards are unique in that they flip this idea by instead bringing the outdoors inside the home, allowing the beauty of the courtyard to be seen from several areas of the home.”

Courtyards are all about the sight lines from inside the home, agreed Tracy Schiefferle, interim director of the Building Industry Association of Central Ohio.

Several builders in recent years have included front courtyards in homes for the association’s annual Parade of Homes, which showcases trends.

“We’re definitely seeing more attention to the front of the house,” she said.

Front courtyards make sense in neighborhoods trying to build community, she said. They mix well with walking trails, bike paths and other amenities designed to help homeowners stay active.

“It reflects how people want to be connected to their neighborhood,” Schiefferle said.

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Hybridizers put twist on bug-eating plants

By Debbie Arrington The Sacramento Bee

They look like they’re from another planet, and that’s part of their allure.

With neon bright hues, these unworldly plants twist their foliage and branches into strange shapes — tubes, pitchers, even snakes. Others are covered with dewy, sticky hairs; the better for killing prey.

They all have one thing in common: They “eat” bugs. And that makes carnivorous plants endlessly fascinating.

“The No. 1 question I get from kids: ‘Will it eat my finger?’” said Eric Trygg, longtime president of the Sacramento Bromeliad and Carnivorous Plant Society. “Adults always ask, ‘Will it eat mosquitoes?’”

The answers: No and yes. Carnivo-

rous plants don’t care for people, but they love winged insects — if they venture close by.

Thanks to social media, carnivorous plants have never been more popular.

In recent years, hybridizers have developed wickedly interesting twists on a few basic species.

Venus flytrap, the most famous bugeating plant and native to the coastal Carolinas, now comes in a wide range of varieties with evocative names, such as B-52, Shark’s Teeth, Red Piranha and Fang.

Trygg is currently creating a bog garden at his Grass Valley, Calif., home.

“I raise my carnivorous plants outdoors year round,” he said. “The cold in winter really helps them. They go dormant, but come back strong.

They’re the easiest plants to grow; they just need to stay moist.”

Water quality is key to keeping any carnivorous plant happy.

“They can’t stand city water,” Trygg said. “Chlorinated water will kill them.

They need distilled water or rain water with no minerals.”

Besides non-chlorinated water, carnivorous plants have few demands.

They make their own fertilizer; that’s why they “eat” bugs. They prefer “bad” soil or no soil at all, growing in a mix of peat moss and sand.

“There are about 650 varieties of carnivorous plants,” he said. “People don’t realize how many there are; all they see is the Venus flytrap. But when they walk into (the plant society’s) show and see our displays, all they can say is, ‘Wow!’”

Dreamstime

Carnivorous plants don’t care much for people as food sources, but they love winged insects if they venture close by.

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