Carnivorous Plant Soil Mix | Venus Flytrap & Pitcher Plant Compost

Carnivorous Plant Soil Mix - suitable for Nepenthes and Sundews

Carnivorous Plant Soil Mix by Black Flag Horticulture

£5.99

Size 1 Litre 3 Litres 5 Litres 10 Litres 20 Litres

Keep your carnivores happy with a soil that won't starve them or burn them.

Venus flytraps, pitcher plants and sundews evolved in bogs so poor in nutrients that they took to catching insects instead. Ordinary compost, even "peat-free" or "houseplant" mixes, contains fertiliser and minerals that burn their roots, and it's the number one reason carnivorous plants die at home. They need a mix that's nutrient-free, acidic, moisture-holding and airy. That's exactly what this is.

What's in the Mix

A classic 1:1 bog blend, hand-mixed by us:

50% Irish moss peat (medium grade): naturally acidic, with no added fertiliser, lime or wetting agents. It holds the constant moisture bog plants rely on.
50% horticultural perlite: keeps the mix open and airy, so roots get oxygen and don't rot, even when the pot sits in water.

Perfect For

Venus flytraps (Dionaea muscipula)
Trumpet pitchers (Sarracenia)
Sundews (Drosera)
Butterworts (Pinguicula), temperate types
Tropical pitcher plants (Nepenthes): works well as is, or add extra perlite or orchid bark for an even airier mix

Not for: ordinary houseplants, cacti or vegetables. With no nutrients at all, it will starve them.

How to Use

Pre-moisten: dry peat repels water at first. Tip the mix into a bowl, add rainwater and work it through with your hands until it's damp all the way through, like a wrung-out sponge.
Pot up: use a pot with drainage holes. Plastic or glazed pots are best, because terracotta leaches minerals over time.
Use the tray method: stand the pot in a saucer holding 1–2cm of water, and top it up as it dries. Most bog carnivores love having wet feet.
Repot yearly: peat slowly breaks down, so refresh the mix each spring before new growth starts.

Rose's Pro-Tip for Carnivorous Success

Water is just as important as soil. Never use tap water or bottled mineral water, because the dissolved minerals build up and kill the roots slowly. Use rainwater, distilled water or reverse osmosis (RO) water only. And don't feed them plant food: they catch their own dinner.

Pair It With a LECA Drainage Layer

Building a bog planter or terrarium? Line the base with a layer of SpheriClay LECA clay pebbles before adding the mix, to stop water pooling around the roots. The Sample and 500ml sizes suit a single pot or terrarium perfectly, and you'll get 10% off when you buy the two together.