An adventurous — and bloodthirsty — plant lover can take on a new challenge Tuesday at a terrarium building class at Dee-sign Landscaping & Garden Shop.
A Venus flytrap traps and eats insects. It’s not an easy plant to grow.
ANNA JOHNSON
Some carnivorous plants, like the infamous Venus flytrap and a pitcher plant, will be available.
The pitcher plant drowns its victims. The Venus flytrap traps its victims and then eats them.
“We feed them little gnats and stuff,” said Anna Johnson, owner of Dee-sign.
Terrarium planting has become very popular, and Dee-Sign provides a terrarium and three plants for its $35 class, which starts at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at 8530 Blondo St.
While a carnivorous plant sounds exotic, Johnson said they are difficult to keep alive.
They like boggy, almost sour soil. They like to stay wet, so they need to be misted two or three times a day.
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Terrariums have become popular. Plants that require high humidity and medium light are the best to use inside.
ANNA JOHNSON photos
Then there’s developing a gnat population to feed your hungry carnivore.
“Just keeping them happy is what makes it so hard,” Johnson said. “They are just particular.”
Johnson ordered some plants specifically for the class. She said they are way too much work for staff to keep alive year-round.
For those undaunted by the challenge, Johnson suggests starting with moss, another plant with colorful foliage and then the carnivorous plant. Then, if the carnivore dies, you’re not left with an empty terrarium.
“People love the idea of them, they love the plant themselves,” she said. “I feel like it’s my responsibility that they know what they are getting into.”
Preregister at 402-392-1444.
Garden calendar
» Examine strawberry plants closely for insects and diseases. Planthoppers, sap beetles, plant bugs, crown rot, verticillium wilt and red stele are common pests. Remove and discard any plant that shows damage. When harvest is complete, remove a third of the oldest plants and reestablish a 12-inch-wide mulched space between the rows.
» Mow turfgrass at 3 to 3.5 inches. This height helps to encourage deep roots and discourage sprouting weeds between plants.
» Mulch the vegetable garden to keep the soil moist and suppress germinating weeds. Use pine needles or grass clippings that have not been treated with a broadleaf herbicide at a 1-inch depth.
» Cease the harvest of asparagus and rhubarb to allow the plant to begin building up carbohydrate reserves for the future.
» Clip off the faded flowers of lilacs, peonies, dogwood and viburnum.
» If you’ve been struggling with a garden tool that isn’t working well such as worn gloves, unrepairable hand pruners, a mishappen kneeling pad or a leaky rain gauge, give yourself the gift of a new one.
John Fech, Nebraska Extension in Douglas-Sarpy Counties
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A severe thunderstorm that had two-inch hail it is seen over Omaha on Wednesday, June 12, 2024.
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