Carnivorous plants are often sold side by side, but their needs are not the same. A Venus flytrap wants a cold winter, a Nepenthes wants none, and a Heliamphora can die in a heat that a Cephalotus shrugs off. This page puts eight common plants next to each other, using the same figures that power our care tools. Each figure names its source: mainly the International Carnivorous Plant Society (ICPS), Barry Rice’s Carnivorous Plant FAQ and the nursery Sarracenia Northwest.
At a Glance
| Plant | Light | Winter | Repotting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venus flytrap | Intense: about 15,000 to 25,000 lux (ICPS) | Cool rest of about three months (Rice, Sarracenia Northwest); not needed under lights indoors (ICPS) | Every year or so (ICPS) |
| Sarracenia | Intense (ICPS) | Rest of about three months, needed every year (Rice, Sarracenia Northwest) | Every 3 or 4 years (ICPS) |
| Sundews | Intense for most species (ICPS) | Temperate species rest as winter buds for about six months (ICPS); our sources give no rest for subtropical species | Subtropical every 3 to 5 years; temperate every 1 to 2 years (ICPS) |
| Mexican butterworts | Moderate: about 8,000 to 15,000 lux (ICPS) | Cooler, drier succulent phase triggered by day length, not cold (ICPS) | About every 5 years for hybrids (ICPS) |
| Cephalotus | Intense (ICPS) | Cool rest of about three months at 55 to 70 °F (13 to 21 °C) (Sarracenia Northwest); “no winter dormancy” (California Carnivores) | Every other year (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Nepenthes | Moderate (ICPS) | None needed (Rice) | No fixed schedule (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Heliamphora | Intense, with light from the side as well as above (ICPS) | Not given in our sources | When the plant needs dividing (ICPS) |
| Cobra lily (Darlingtonia) | Not rated by the ICPS; 75 to 400 µmol/m²/s, an untested estimate (Carnivero) | Slows or stops growing (Rice) | Not given in our sources |
Temperature Limits
Our sources give hard numbers mainly for the plants from tropical mountains and from cool, wet places. For flytraps and Sarracenia the concern is winter cold, covered above and in our dormancy checker.
| Plant | Days | Nights and limits |
|---|---|---|
| Nepenthes, common nursery hybrids | 68 to 88 °F (20 to 31 °C) (Sarracenia Northwest) | 50 to 65 °F (10 to 18 °C) (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Nepenthes, highland species | 70 to 85 °F (21 to 29 °C) (Clemson and NC State Extension together) | 50 °F (10 °C) to the low 60s °F (about 17 °C) |
| Nepenthes, lowland species | 70 to 95 °F (21 to 35 °C) (Clemson and NC State Extension) | Same range by night |
| Heliamphora | Tolerates up to 86 °F (30 °C) in cultivation; above 104 °F (40 °C) is fatal for most species (ICPS, citing Andreas Wistuba) | Large plants can die with prolonged temperatures above 79 °F (26 °C) (ICPS) |
| Cephalotus | Up to 100 °F (38 °C) in Sarracenia Northwest’s collection | A night drop below 70 °F (21 °C) is essential when days are very warm; heated to at least 35 °F (2 °C) in freezing weather (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Cobra lily (Darlingtonia) | Keep the soil below 80 °F (27 °C) (ICPS) | Air temperature matters less as long as the roots stay cool (ICPS) |
| Mexican butterworts | Mild indoor temperatures; avoid prolonged heat (Sarracenia Northwest) | Cooler and drier in winter (ICPS) |
Feeding and Fertilizer
| Plant | Hand feeding | Fertilizer in the soil |
|---|---|---|
| Venus flytrap | Optional outdoors (Sarracenia Northwest); squeeze the trap gently after feeding dead food (ICPS, Rice) | No: “living dangerously” (ICPS) |
| Sarracenia | Rarely needed; S. purpurea benefits from some food in its pitchers (ICPS) | A good idea only for juvenile plants (ICPS) |
| Sundews | Wet food on dewy leaves only (ICPS) | No (ICPS) |
| Mexican butterworts | Ground dried blood worms (ICPS) | Light fertilizing in a pure mineral mix (ICPS) |
| Cephalotus | Blood worm dust or pellets in pitchers that hold water (ICPS) | Very dilute only, with regular flushing (ICPS) |
| Nepenthes | Blood worm or a small pellet in pitchers that hold water, one or two pitchers first (ICPS) | Use a fertilizer-free mix (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Heliamphora | Needs feeding to grow well, in the pitcher (ICPS) | Too much is one of the easiest ways to kill it (ICPS) |
| Cobra lily (Darlingtonia) | Catches its own; dilute, urea-free fertilizer water in the pitcher can help (ICPS) | Does not appear to help (ICPS) |
Two rules apply to all eight. Barry Rice calls feeding the last thing to worry about, because a plant short of light or water cannot digest its food. And never feed meat or insects killed with pesticide. Our feeding guide turns this into a plan for your plant.
Default Soil Mix
| Plant | Mix in our sources |
|---|---|
| Venus flytrap, Sarracenia, subtropical sundews | 1 part peat moss to 1 part silica sand, the ICPS “CP mix”; Sarracenia Northwest uses peat and perlite |
| Mexican butterworts | Peat, coarse sand and perlite in equal parts, with dolomitic lime (ICPS) |
| Cephalotus | 1 part peat or chopped sphagnum to 4 parts sand, sitting in shallow water (ICPS) |
| Nepenthes | Dried sphagnum moss and perlite in equal parts (Sarracenia Northwest) |
| Heliamphora | Long-fibred sphagnum, perlite and aquatic planting medium in equal parts (ICPS) |
| Cobra lily (Darlingtonia) | Peat, perlite or pumice, and orchid bark (ICPS, citing Jeff Dallas) |
Water is the one thing all eight share: use rain, distilled or reverse osmosis water. Barry Rice and Sarracenia Northwest recommend 50 ppm or less of dissolved solids, and the ICPS sets 90 ppm as the limit for tap water. Test yours with our water checker.
Patterns Across the Eight Plants
Put side by side, the figures above fall into a few clear groups. This is our own reading of the tables, not a claim from any single source.
- Three kinds of winter. Flytraps, Sarracenia, temperate sundews and the cobra lily slow down or stop in a cold winter. Cephalotus and Mexican butterworts take a cooler or drier rest, but not a freeze. Nepenthes needs no rest, and our sources give none for Heliamphora; for these two the risk is heat, not cold.
- Two light levels. The ICPS puts flytraps, Sarracenia, most sundews, Cephalotus and Heliamphora in its intense-light band, and Nepenthes and butterworts in the moderate band. Under the same lamp, the moderate-light plants can sit further away or on the edges.
- Heat is the hidden killer for mountain plants. Heliamphora and the cobra lily have the lowest heat limits in the tables, and both limits are about the plant or its roots staying cool, not about humidity.
- Fertilizer splits the group. The sources warn hardest against soil fertilizer for flytraps, sundews and Heliamphora. A little is tolerated by juvenile Sarracenia, Mexican butterworts in a mineral mix, and Cephalotus if the pot is flushed.
- Repotting ranges from yearly to every five years. Flytraps and small temperate sundews need fresh soil most often; Mexican butterwort hybrids least often.
Which Plants Fit Your Setup
| Your setup | Plants that fit, based on the tables |
|---|---|
| Outdoors with cold winters | Sarracenia, Venus flytrap, cobra lily. The ICPS says dormant Sarracenia and cobra lilies survive being frozen if protected from drying out or with rhizomes covered. |
| Warm all year, no winter | Nepenthes. For flytraps, Rice suggests a refrigerator dormancy as probably the best method in the tropics. |
| Indoors with moderate light | Nepenthes and Mexican butterworts, the two moderate-light plants in the ICPS ratings. |
| Indoors under strong grow lights | Any of the intense-light plants. Mexican butterworts need a timer that changes with the seasons, the ICPS says. |
| Hot summers | Avoid Heliamphora and the cobra lily unless you can keep plants or roots cool. Cephalotus takes hot days if nights drop below 70 °F (21 °C). |
Check Your Own Setup
- Light checker: lux or PPFD readings for your plant
- Temperature and humidity checker
- Dormancy checker
- Soil mix calculator
- Feeding guide
- Repotting advisor
- Water checker
- Symptom checker
Sources
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, LED plant lighting, John Brittnacher [carnivorousplants.org/grow/SoilsWaterLight/LEDplantlighting]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Feeding plants [carnivorousplants.org/grow/feed]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Sarracenia soil fertilization [carnivorousplants.org/grow/feed/sarraceniasoil]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Dionaea [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Dionaea]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Sarracenia [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Sarracenia]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing subtropical Drosera [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/SubtropicalDrosera]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing cold temperate Drosera [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/ColdTemperateDrosera]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Repot cold temperate Drosera in spring [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/RepotTemperateDrosera]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Mexican Pinguicula [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/MexicanPinguicula]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Cephalotus follicularis [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Cephalotus]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Nepenthes from seed [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Nepenthes]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Heliamphora [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Heliamphora]
- International Carnivorous Plant Society, Growing Darlingtonia [carnivorousplants.org/grow/guides/Darlingtonia]
- Barry Rice, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ, About dormancy requirements [sarracenia.com/faq/faq3480.html]
- Barry Rice, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ, Winter dormancy? Huh? What? [sarracenia.com/faq/faq2360.html]
- Barry Rice, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ, How often should I feed my plant? [sarracenia.com/faq/faq3075.html]
- Barry Rice, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ, About fertilizer and hamburger meat [sarracenia.com/faq/faq3560.html]
- Barry Rice, The Carnivorous Plant FAQ: water [sarracenia.com/faq/faq3380.html]
- Sarracenia Northwest, Venus flytrap care [growcarnivorousplants.com/venus-flytrap-care]
- Sarracenia Northwest, Sarracenia care [growcarnivorousplants.com/sarracenia-care]
- Sarracenia Northwest, Nepenthes care [growcarnivorousplants.com/nepenthes-care]
- Sarracenia Northwest, How to grow Cephalotus [growcarnivorousplants.com/cephalotus-follicularis-care]
- Sarracenia Northwest, How to grow tropical butterworts [growcarnivorousplants.com/tropical-butterwort-care]
- California Carnivores, Australian pitcher plants (Cephalotus follicularis) growing tips [californiacarnivores.com/blogs/growing-tips]
- Clemson Cooperative Extension, Tropical pitcher plants (Nepenthes spp.), Jackie Jordan [hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/tropical-pitcher-plants-nepenthes-spp-indoor-care-growing-tips-plant-guide]
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, Nepenthes [plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/nepenthes]
- Carnivero, Genera specific PPFD recommendations [carnivero.com/pages/grow-light-ppfd-recommendations]
This comparison is editorially reviewed and its figures are checked against the cited sources. Last reviewed: October 2026.