Sundew (Drosera): carnivorous, insectivorous plant, cultivation and care. Sundew - a predator plant that lures victims with its beauty. What is the sundew plant famous for?

14.06.2019

Types and varieties of sundew, which are found in nature, differ from each other in color and flower shape. This unusual plant feeds on various insects. What sundew looks like and what are its most popular types can be found in this article.

Rosyanka: general characteristics

This flower has been known to mankind since ancient times. He was a source of inspiration for writers and poets, became part of numerous fairy tales and myths. Artists drew it, travelers deified it, and the discoverers oriented themselves like a guiding star.

Another name for sundew is drosera. This plant belongs to insectivorous, grows in natural conditions throughout the globe. Most of the more than a hundred species are concentrated in New Zealand and Australia. Large-leaved sundew is common in northern latitudes, well adapted to temperate climates and swampy areas. This variety received a beautiful and poetic name from the English people, who called the plant "sunny dew".

In the wild, sundew propagation is carried out by seeds that themselves are sown and germinate. After the grain has touched the soil, sprouts appear a year later.

Many representatives of this species reproduce by self-pollination, others do it with the help. Plants catch flies not with flowers, but with sticky leaves, and therefore, during pollination, the flower is not terrible for them. The stalk with a bud is much higher than the dangerous leafy plates.

Popular types and varieties of sundew

When choosing a sundew in a store, you must first study its types and learn about the rules for caring for them.

Cape sundew

This flower is considered the most beautiful relative to the rest. Suitable for living and growing indoors. The plant is not whimsical, can easily grow and bloom all year round. Outwardly, such an instance is distinguished by a small stem, many white flowers and long leaves. In height, the flower reaches only 13 cm, however, even with a small stature, it remains a real predator, like other types of sundew. Catching insects in the plant occurs due to white villi with sticky droplets that cover the leaves.

The digestion of the victim in the Cape sundew is carried out for a couple of days.

English sundew (long-leaved)

English sundew was brought to us from the Hawaiian Islands. Today, in nature, it can be found in the Caucasus, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus and Central Asia. The preferred soil for the plant will be sandy, damp marshland. The flower can reach a height of 9 to 24 cm. Fragile leaves are quite large - 9-11 cm, look up. Sundew blooms with white flowers, falls in July. Seeds are formed in a single-cell box.

The flower is not only a predator, but also poisonous.

Despite this, the English sundew is widely used in treatment: for this, the aerial part of the flower is taken, which must be healthy and not have flaws. The plant has an effect on the body:

bactericidal;
anti-inflammatory;
diuretic;
antipyretic;
expectorant;
antispasmodic;
soothing.

The composition includes naphthoquinones, organic acids and many other useful elements.

Blackened flowers are strictly forbidden to take for treatment, because they are toxic and can be harmful.

Rosyanka rotundifolia

This flower is the most numerous in the world. The ideal soil for the plant is a peat bog. This species tolerates the average climate well, grows in America, Russia, Europe, Asia. The flower has other, folk names - "God's dew", "sunny dew".

The leaves of this species grow closer to the roots, have an oval shape, on the surface of which there are red tentacle hairs with a sticky effect. Flowering occurs in white flowers, falls in mid-summer. The stem reaches a height of 19 cm. Seeds are formed by the end of August, located in one-cell boxes.

Autumn - best time collect seed and sow it in moist peat soil in a greenhouse or under a film.

This sundew tolerates frost well: in winter, it has special buds that hide in the plant. After the appearance of the first sun, they open and new annual stems form.

The upper part of the flower is applicable in the field of health. It contains tannins, ascorbic, organic acids and dyes. All these components help to cure a cough, as they have an expectorant effect.

royal sundew

This is a rare specimen, blooms with bright pink flowers. The height of the stem ranges from 29-32 cm. This species occurs naturally in South Africa and is represented by several populations. This sundew is distinguished by the largest leaves - 0.7-2 m. It belongs to rare plants.

Rosyanka disyllabic

Such a sundew natural environment found on the shores of the Australian continent. It can often be seen in the coastal cities of South Australia, Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales. The species is also common in New Zealand. Many sundew populations in this region are characterized by year-round flowering: these are numerous white buds. Some species hibernate in winter and wake up in spring. This variety is fundamentally different from others. The leaves are outwardly forked narrow in shape, they grow on branches.

This sundew is the largest among its counterparts: the flower grows up to 65 cm.

Rosyanka Alicia

The birthplace of Alicia's sundew is South Africa, where the plant feels great in subtropical conditions. The leaves of this sundew, like those of other species, are covered with villi, the tops of which are smeared with a sticky liquid. The oval plates on the surface have special hairs that react very clearly to the touch of insects. After folding the leaf, the victim is in its center, like the filling of a roll. The insect is enveloped by the plant and the process of digestion begins. When it is finished, the sheet returns to its original position. Flowering is carried out by small pink flowers located in small inflorescences.

sundew burman

The flower owes its name to the scientist Johannes Burman, since it was he who first described it in a work called “On the Flora of Ceylon”. The homeland of the variety is Southeast Asia and Australia. The species is adapted for living in the subtropics.

A distinctive feature of the Burman sundew compared to its other relatives is the rapid ingestion and processing of prey.

It only takes a couple of seconds for a leaf to wrap itself around its prey, although other species do the same for several minutes.

The long leafy plates of the flower grow from the root, and the shoots reach 9-11 cm. Flowering occurs with white flowers, arranged in racemose inflorescences. In connection with small size plants on each branch formed up to three buds. Flowers can self-pollinate, reproduction occurs by seeds.

sundew filiform

This species is large in size, its height is up to 49 cm. The leaves are shimmering, arranged straight. The filiform sundew is divided into two subspecies. The first group includes Florida Red, Thread sundew, Florida Giant. Trace and Filamentous sundew are reckoned to the second. They are distributed north of Gulf of Mexico.

Rosyanka offspring

This species in nature feels good on the steep cliffs of the Australian coast. Its normal living conditions are more than 1000 meters above the sea. Sundew leaves are heart-shaped, located at the roots on long shoots. In the heat they become light, pale yellow. In the cold season, the color of the plates changes to red, orange or purple. Young shoots come out of the peduncle where it comes into contact with the soil, they grow very quickly. Sundew is propagated by seeds, and sometimes this process is similar to growth - after flowering, it forms a mustache. This species, like related varieties, swallows insects: the leaf is twisted in 19 minutes.

Sundew Glanduliger: petiole and lemon

This type of sundew is quite original. This applies to the process of reprisal with the victim. Special mechanism throws the prey, and it is straight in the center of the sheet. Such a kind of throwing is carried out by processes, for which this process is based on a change in fluid pressure. The speed is about 15 cm per second. This distinguishing feature has been described by scientists quite recently, and the process has not yet received a full study. Each offshoot can make only one toss, after which it dies. A new shoot is formed in the same place.

The petiolate sundew is native to New Guinea and Australia. Deciduous plates are located at the roots, they are long and narrow, reaching a height of 16 cm. The carnivorous leaves of the plant do not differ in large size. The appearance of a flower depends on the climate where it lives. As a rule, it is heat and temperature up to 41 ° C, as well as low level humidity. Flowers are white.

Lemon sundew in its natural environment lives in Australia, grows excellently on the sandy shores of reservoirs. The leaves are oval in shape, flat, and there is a notch at the top. Due to such appearance the plant received another name - heart-shaped or serrated. This species requires special care, due to too thin leaves. Such plates can be easily damaged, and for them normal growth good humidity is required. Feels best in the shade, in a place inaccessible to the sun.

With information on the varieties and types of sundew, you can do right choice in growing this plant. If you provide sundew with full and high-quality care, it will delight you with its charming flowering and lush growth.

Sundew in the wild - video

Oct 26 2017

Sundew: description of plant species and varieties

Sundew (Drosera) belongs to the genus of carnivorous plants of the family Drosyankovye (Droseraceae). Its spread across the planet is astonishing. It is found in all parts of the world except Antarctica. Most Rosyanka in Australia and New Zealand. It owes its vitality to the special structure and method of obtaining food. The main business of the life of an insectivorous predator is hunting. There are about 200 species of this plant. The Latin name "Drosera" was given to the plant by Carl Linnaeus, which means "Dew" in Russian. As soon as people do not call Rosyanka - both a flycatcher, and a charming killer, and Solar dew. In this article we will talk about the most popular types and varieties of Rosyanka.

Sundew is a perennial herbaceous carnivorous plant, at the base of which a dense basal rosette of leaves forms. Petiolate or sessile leaves are covered with hairs along the edges and their entire surface, which, when in contact with living insects, are irritated and secrete a fragrant sticky substance that has paralytic properties and resembles digestive enzymes in composition. It is with the help of this liquid that the flycatcher preys on insects. The liquid contains organic acids such as formic, citric, malic, ascorbic and benzoic, as well as digestive enzymes such as pepsin. It is they who break down insect proteins into simpler compounds that the plant can absorb.

It is interesting that even Charles Darwin, conducting numerous observations and experiments with Rosyanka rotundifolia, discovered that the plant is able to digest even pieces of cartilage and bone. After the digestion of the insect, nothing remains of it, except for the chitinous shell, and even that is soon washed off from the surface of the opened leaf by rain or blown away by the wind.

At different types Sundew leaves vary greatly in size and shape. Their length ranges from 5 mm in the dwarf growing in Australia to two meters in the Royal, which is found in South African countries.

Rosyanka is a flowering plant. Flowering occurs in the spring-summer months. At this time, long stems appear from the center of the leaf rosette. Rosyanka flowers are collected in an inflorescence - an ear of bright pink, white or cream color. A flower with a double perianth and a corolla consisting of several petals - from four to eight (more often - five). The number of stamens is equal to the number of petals. The pistil forms one nested ovary with a large number of seeds. Ovary superior, rounded. The fruits usually appear in August. They are boxes with numerous small spindle-shaped seeds. The fruit opens into three wings.

Under natural conditions, sundew reproduces by self-sowing. Seeds fall on the soil and germinate in a year. Some types of Sundews are able to self-pollinate, others need the help of insects. But, in all flycatchers, the stem with flowers located at the top is much longer than the trap leaves, so pollinating insects do not fall on the sticky hairs of the leaves, which is very important during plant pollination.

What does Rosyanka eat?

The structure of the leaf-traps of the flower is quite original, corresponding to the type of nutrition of the Sundew. Their entire surface is covered with numerous hairs. At the tip of each hair, a drop of dew sparkles in the sun, which is not dew at all, but sticky, sticky mucus, which, with its aroma, attracts the attention of small insects and deprives them of the opportunity to escape. Having landed on a flower, flies, mosquitoes, midges instantly stick. Of course, they begin to desperately break out of the sticky captivity. But the sundew leaf is unusually sensitive. The lightest touch of the mosquito is enough, as all its hairs begin to move, bending in an effort to stick around the prey with sticky mucus and move it to the middle of the sheet. The leaf immediately begins to curl up around the victim and, with the help of enzymes located in the center of the leaf on the digestive villi, paralyzes, immobilizes the prey and begins to digest it. The process of digestion lasts for different types of Sundews from several minutes to a week, after which the petals unfold again and become covered with sparkling dewdrops. The flower freezes in anticipation of the next victim.

It is interesting that the plant does not react in any way to falling on a leaf of small debris, sand, earth, pieces of bark or raindrops. It has been scientifically established that Sundew's tentacles react only to organic objects that have nutritional value.

In the wild, Rosyanka settles in marshy or sandy places where the soil is poor in nitrogen. Therefore, having caught and digested another victim, the plant makes up for the lack of nitrogen and other minerals such as magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, and potassium. In Russia, there are only three types of sundew: round-leaved, intermediate and English. They grow in the temperate climate of the European part of the country, in the Far East and Siberia. They endure cold winter, forming special, tightly folded, hibernating buds. Such buds in an airtight bag with sphagnum moss are stored for up to five months.

The use of Rosyanka for medicinal and economic purposes

Rosyanka grass, collected during its flowering, is used for coughs, bronchitis, including whooping cough. It has been proven that it contains a substance such as plumbagon - an antibiotic that helps in the fight against microbes and pathogenic fungi - streptococci and staphylococci. It is used by homeopaths to prepare nutritional supplements. Externally, Rosyanka juice is used to exterminate warts and chronic calluses. For this, young, freshly picked leaves are used. Inner part leaves, where glandular hairs are located, wipe warts or calluses. After several procedures, they disappear. And decoctions of dry leaves of Rosyanka are used as diuretics and diaphoretics, for fevers, and for eye diseases. We draw your attention to the fact that not fresh leaves are used for decoctions, but dry raw materials. It is best to harvest it in summer, during the flowering period, although it is possible during the entire growing season, while Rosyanka is above the soil surface. It is better to dry with the help of dryers, at a temperature of 40 gr. But you can do it in a well-ventilated area. Store - in cloth bags for no more than two years.

Infusions are recommended to drink with asthma, atherosclerosis, diarrhea, dropsy, dysentery, as well as headaches. Prepare them like this: 1 tsp. dry herb Sundews pour 1 cup of boiling water. Insist for one hour, filter and squeeze the grass. The resulting solution is consumed after meals 3-4 times a day, 1 tbsp. spoon. It is important not to exceed the indicated doses so as not to cause vomiting or upset the digestive system.

Pharmacies sell ready-made alcoholic tinctures of Rosyanka for the treatment of diseases of the upper respiratory tract. Alcohol tincture can be prepared independently in a ratio of 1:10. Take 10 g of dried sundew grass and 100 ml of 40% alcohol or vodka. Insist in a dark place at room temperature for 10 days. Filter. Then it is used as a pharmaceutical preparation. Children are given 10 drops, diluted with water, 3-4 times a day. Adults - 15 drops in a glass of water 4-5 times a day.

But it is important to know that all parts of the plant are poisonous. Self-medication is dangerous. Any non-compliance with the dosage threatens with poisoning. Therefore, before treating diseases with any parts of Rosyanka, consult a specialist.

In the North, Rosyanka is used for steaming jars for storing milk. Over time, milk in jars is poorly stored, it begins to quickly turn sour. Then a sundew with a small amount of water is placed in a jug. The jug is placed in a Russian stove and steamed for some time. The enzymes that are in the leaves of Rosyanka dissolve everything organic matter, remaining after souring milk and penetrating deep into the clay pores of the lid. After steaming with Rosyanka, milk is stored in such a jug again long time and does not sour.

In Italy, sundew is used in the preparation of Rosolio liqueur.

We present you some types of Rosyanka with a photo

Sundew round-leaved

This is the most common type of sundew. Most often it is found in peat bogs in the temperate climatic zones of Europe, America, Asia. In Russia too. It is surprising that this flower-predator is affectionately called by the people - God's dew, Solar dew, Tsar's eyes, Rosichka. The flower has basal leaves with a rounded leaf plate, which is framed by hairs - red tentacles that secrete sticky mucus. The plant has a stem about 20 cm long. It blooms in mid-summer with white flowers. The fruits ripen at the end of summer in the form of single-celled boxes. This species propagates by seeds, which are collected in autumn and sown in greenhouses on the surface of moist peat soil. This is a winter-hardy type of Rosyanka. By winter, it forms special wintering buds that go deep into the thickness of sphagnum moss. When the sun begins to warm and the snow melts, annual shoots appear from these buds.

The ground part of the round-leaved sundew is used for medicinal purposes. It contains ascorbic acid, tannins and dyes, organic acids. Apply decoctions of Rosyanka leaves for coughing, as an expectorant (see above).

Sundew Cape

This type of Rosyanka is the most beautiful. It is most often grown at home. It grows all year round. Absolutely unpretentious plant. Can adapt to any living conditions. The Cape Rosyanka has a low stem, thin elongated leaves and numerous, attractive-looking white flowers. The plant reaches only 12 cm in height. But this does not prevent him from being the same dangerous predator for insects as his tall relatives. The Cape Rosyanka has white hairs - tentacles with dew drops at the ends, with the help of which the flower catches and absorbs food. The digestion process usually takes several days.

Sundew Intermediate

This species of carnivorous plant is found most commonly in the peat bogs of the United States, Cuba, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, as well as many places in Europe. This is a low plant, five to eight cm in height. Its leaves are collected in a basal rosette and have an arched, curved back lanceolate shape. The surface of the leaves is covered with numerous red hairs with glands, at the ends of which droplets of sticky mucus are released to hold and swallow insects. Rosyanka intermediate blooms in July-August. Flowers white color, very small. The plant does not have a dormant period. It is considered the easiest to grow indoors.

Sundew English poisonous

This species grows in the Hawaiian Islands, and is also common in Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Belarus, and Ukraine. Prefers wet, sandy and sphagnum bogs. The height of the plant ranges from 7 to 25 cm. The leaves are thin on long petioles, reach a size of 10 cm, directed upwards. Their shape is lanceolate. Blooms in mid-summer with white flowers. The fruit is a single-celled capsule with grayish-brown seeds. English sundew is a poisonous representative of predator plants, has medicinal properties. Use all ground part healthy plant. However, it is strictly forbidden to use blackened or dark brown grass for medicinal purposes due to its high toxicity.

All parts of English sundew contain ascorbic acid and other organic acids, naphthoquinones, enzymes similar to pepsin. The plant has anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, bactericidal, diuretic, antispasmodic, expectorant and sedative effects.

Sundew Disyllabic

This type of Sundew grows in New Zealand, on Stewart Island, in the Chatham Archipelago, as well as in the southern coastal regions of Australia. Some varieties of this plant grow and bloom with white flowers all year round. Others are in winter time go into a state of rest. Sundew dissyllabic differs from others in narrow, branching, forked leaves and an impressive height - up to 60 cm.

Alicia sundew hairs move prey to the center of the leaf

This subtropical sundew species came to us from South Africa. It has unusual leaves - in the form of miniature plates, the surface of which is covered with numerous hairs - tentacles with droplets of mucus at the tips. These hairs are very sensitive. From the slightest touch, they set in motion, bend and move the prey to the center of the sheet. Gradually, the leaf curls up around the insect and turns into a kind of small stomach. When digestion is complete, the leaf unfolds and again becomes covered with drops of sweet fragrant dew. Alicia's sundew blooms with racemose inflorescences with pink small flowers.

Sundew Burman

The leaves of Burman sundew wrap around prey in a few seconds

It grows in subtropical areas of Australia and Southeast Asia. Unlike other species, this is the fastest predatory plant from the sundew family in swallowing insects. Its leaves wrap around prey in a few seconds, when this process takes minutes or even hours for other sundews. Rosyanka Burman has short stems and wedge-shaped leaves 10 cm long, forming a dense basal rosette. White flowers form tall racemose inflorescences. There are up to three of them on one plant. The plant reproduces by seeds. Flowers on a long peduncle are self-pollinating. This species got its name from the scientist Johannes Burman, who first described it in his book On the Flora of Ceylon in 1737.

sundew filiform

This rather large representative grows up to 50 cm in height. It has upright, linear, shimmering leaves. This species has two subspecies. The first subspecies includes the Filamentous Sundew, Florida Red, and Florida Giant. The second subspecies - Filamentous sundew variety of Trace - grows in the northern part of the Gulf Coast.

Rosyanka Offspring

Sundew offspring can breed with a mustache

The offspring sundew grows at an altitude of 1200 meters above sea level on the rocks and rocky shores of Australia. Small heart-shaped leaves on long petioles form a dense basal rosette with a diameter of about 6 cm. In the hot season, the leaves are pale green and yellowish in color. With the advent of cold weather, they change their color to orange, red and purple. New specimens of the plant are formed on the peduncle at the points of contact with the ground and spread very quickly. In addition to traditional methods of reproduction, Rosyanka offspring reproduces, like our strawberries, with mustaches that form on the plant after it blooms. The speed of swallowing prey in this species of sundews is average - folding a leaf around the victim takes about 20 minutes.

Sundew glanduliger, with the help of the movement of processes, throws an insect into the center of the leaf, like a catapult

Sundew glanduliger has a unique mechanism that, like a catapult, throws an insect into the center of the leaf. This process is carried out with the help of the movement of the processes, which, due to changes in fluid pressure at the base of the processes, move at lightning speed (16 cm per second). Scientists biologists discovered this feature recently, and the process has not been fully studied. It is only known that such a process works only once. After that, it dies, and a new one grows in its place.

Rosyanka Petiole

Sundew Petiole has small leaves-traps relative to other species

Grows in Australia and New Guinea. It has long narrow leaves forming a basal rosette from 5 to 30 cm in diameter and 15 cm in height. Compared to other sundew species, petiole trap leaves are small. This is due to the fact that it grows in areas with a hot climate, with temperatures up to 30 - 40 gr. and lack of moisture. Flowers common for Sundews, white.

Lemongrass sundew is also called serrated or heart-shaped

It grows in Australia on heavily shaded sandy banks of Queensland streams. A distinctive feature of this species is in the notch at the top of flat oval leaves. For this, she was nicknamed the jagged or heart-shaped Rosyanka. This is the most capricious type of sundew in the care. This is explained by the fact that lemongrass sundew has very thin, straight "paper" leaves, which are easily damaged and require high humidity. She also needs in large numbers aeration. It will grow only in a dark place where the sun's rays do not fall.

Sundew Cistaceae has the largest flowers

This species grows only in Africa, in the provinces of the Northern and Southern Cape of South Africa. This sundew got its name because of the similarity of inflorescences with flowers of the Cistus family. The plant is active during the colder months in moist, sandy substrate. In the extreme hot and dry conditions of South Africa (November-March), the plant survives by retaining water and nutrients in thick, fleshy, fibrous roots. The height of the stem reaches 40 cm, the leaves 2 to 5 cm long do not have petioles, they are located directly on the stems. The color of the leaves is from yellowish green to red. Rosyanka Cistus flowers have the largest flowers, more than 6 cm in diameter, bloom in August-September.

This species is highly variable. Almost every plant is distinguished by its shape, height and leaf color. The color of the inflorescences is also very different - from white, pink and orange, to crimson and red. In the vicinity of the city of Darling (South Africa) you can find a rare, endangered form of Sundew Cistaceae, blooming in bright red, with black veins in the center of the flower, which makes the flower very similar to a blooming poppy.

It can be assumed that in the near future the species of Sundew Cistaceae will be divided into subspecies and varieties.

Rosyanka Horde

Horde Rosyanka grows on sandy soils in Western Australia. A distinctive feature is wide petioles, densely covered with silvery tentacle hairs. The plant forms rosettes from 8 cm to 30 cm in diameter. Numerous leaves of Rosyanka Ordynskaya consist of a long, hairy petiole supporting an almost round leaf plate covered with tentacles. During the dry season, the leaves become smaller and dormant. Flowering occurs from December to April. The flowers are white and pink, about 1.5 cm in diameter. The plant requires a lot of light, the optimum growth temperature is + 18 ... + 30 ° C. Frost does not withstand.

This is a low, broad-leaved, tuberous plant about 6 cm in diameter. The color of the leaves at the beginning of the growing season is pale green, and by the end of the growing season it gradually becomes golden yellow and redder. Sundew bulbous grows in Western Australia. It has a typical rosette of leaves. Blooms from April to June with white flowers. The difference is in the presence of yellow pollen and stems that form an annular space (crown) around the open top of the ovary.

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Sundew

There is a group of plants in the magnificent kingdom of Flora, which at all times not only delighted natural scientists and naturalists, but also served as an inexhaustible source of inspiration for the creators of chilling fables, in which human fantasy more than made up for the lack of accurate knowledge and facts.

These plants belong to different families and live in a wide variety of climatic zones - from the arctic tundra to the equatorial jungle. But they have one common feature- they are all insectivorous predators, the main business of which is hunting. And even if the prey is small by our standards, and the hunting process itself is silent, in these dramatic fights between plant and animal, the attentive observer discovers the great law of the perpetual motion of Nature - the struggle for survival.

Sundews are one of the most common carnivorous plants. They grow all over the world and number about 100 species, most of which live in Australia and New Zealand. Their typical representative is the large-leaved sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), often growing in the swamps of the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. The English gave this sundew the poetic name sun-dew, that is, “solar dew”.

Indeed, the trapping leaves of this plant are unusual - they resemble a small plate, the upper part of which is covered with numerous hairs, and at the tip of each of them there is a drop of sticky liquid sparkling in the sun, attracting the attention of a potential victim. The alluring drop of “dew” turns out to be sticky mucus, which deprives the insect of the opportunity to escape. The sundew leaf is unusually sensitive - the lightest touch is enough, and all its hairs begin to move, bending towards the center in an effort to wrap the victim with a sticky substance as "generous" as possible and move it to the very middle of the leaf - where the digestive villi are. Gradually, the sundew leaf closes over the insect, turning into a kind of tiny stomach.

As you know, most plants get the necessary nutrients from the soil. Some of them chose a different path and, in the course of their evolution, acquired amazing devices for catching and then digesting insects. We must make a reservation right away that such an exotic way of subsistence was chosen not out of a whim, but out of necessity, because the swampy soils on which most plant predators live are very scarce and can only provide them with a “living wage”

Experiments show that plants that live only at the expense of root nutrition, unlike their counterparts that receive animal food, are noticeably stunted in growth and are in an extremely depressed state. Plants that live in waterlogged soils suffer from a lack of various substances: phosphorus, potassium and especially nitrogen. In a natural desire to somehow replenish this “starvation ration”, plants have developed various trapping organs, which are nothing more than modified leaves, equipped with glands that secrete digestive enzymes and organic acids, allowing the plant to assimilate the caught prey. It is easy to assume that carnivorous plants - as a kind of botanical curiosity - are quite rare in nature. However, it is not. This group of plants includes almost 500 species from 6 families, various representatives of which are found in all parts of the world. Although the greatest species diversity of such predators, of course, is inherent in the tropics.

One of the most beautiful sundews is the Cape sundew (Drosera capensis). Its stem, usually reaching several centimeters in height, bears thin, elongated leaves. The plant gradually develops numerous, very attractive flowers. However, the Cape sundew is a charming, but convinced predator, patiently waiting for prey. The digestion process usually takes several days.

Sundew glands secrete a liquid containing organic acids (mainly benzoic and formic) and digestive enzymes such as pepsin, which break down insect proteins into simpler compounds that the plant can absorb. Charles Darwin, who conducted numerous observations and experiments with the large-leaved sundew, discovered amazing ability of this plant to digest even pieces of bone and cartilage. From the insects caught by sundew, only chitinous covers, insoluble by enzymes, remain, which are soon washed off from the surface of the trapping leaf by rain or blown away by the wind.

All sundews are insectivorous plants. The sticky substance produced by the leaves contains the alkaloid coniine, which has a paralytic effect on insects, and digestive enzymes. After the insect is caught, the edges of the leaf are closed, covering it entirely. The speed of leaf folding in some species of sundews is quite significant, especially in Drosera burmannii.

This method of plant nutrition makes it possible, under conditions of depleted soils, to absorb from the insect during its digestion such substances useful for the plant as sodium, potassium, magnesium salts, phosphorus and nitrogen. After the insect has been digested (usually it takes several days), the leaf opens again.

The mechanism of leaf folding is selective and reacts only to organic food, while accidental exposures in the form of a drop of water or a fallen leaf do not cause a digestive process.

Three species are found in the European part of Russia, Siberia, and the Far East: round-leaved sundew, king's eyes, sundew, and Rosichka (Drosera rotundifolia L.); sundew English or long-leaved (Drosera anglica Huds.); sundew intermediate (Drosera intermedia Hayne.). These sundews, which grow in temperate climates, endure the cold winter by forming special densely built wintering buds. Such buds can be stored in an airtight bag in a small amount of sphagnum for four to five months.

Round-leaved sundew (Drosera rotundifolia L.), or common sundew, is a frost-resistant rosette plant, the most widespread species growing in our country. Forms summer and autumn inflorescences, consisting of small white or pink flowers. Although this species is still widely distributed in sphagnum bogs in cold regions of North America, Europe and Asia, in some parts of its range, its populations have been greatly reduced due to the draining of bogs and peat harvesting. In the Red List of 1997, it is placed among endangered species.

English sundew (Drosera anglica Huds.) grows on sphagnum bogs often together with round-leaved sundew. This species is widely distributed in areas temperate climate in North America (Canada, USA), Europe, in the European part of Russia, Siberia, the Far East (Kamchatka, Primorye, Sakhalin), Japan. In some parts of the range, it is endangered due to the violation of natural habitats; it is included in the Red Books and lists of rare plants in some regions of Russia.

Sundew filiform (Drosera filiformis) - beautiful plant, reaching 50 cm in height, it develops erect linear leaves that shine and shimmer. In this species, two varieties are distinguished - sundew filamentous variety filamentous (Drosera filiformis var. filiformis), growing from the northeastern and mid-Atlantic parts of the United States to a small area on the Florida peninsula; and sundew filamentous variety of Trace (Drosera filiformis var. tracyi) - from the northern part of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The filiform sundew is most endangered in the southern part of its North American range, where acid swamps are exploited in the lowland grass savannahs.

Other sundews are a group of closely related tropical species endemic to a small patch of rainforest in Queensland, Australia.

Sundew Adel (Drosera adelae) is quite large and very unpretentious. Characterized by elongated lanceolate leaves, grows along streams on sandy soils near the ocean coast. Tolerant of brighter light and cooler living conditions than related species, but frost tolerant.

The offspring sundew (Drosera prolifera) grows on wet rocks and rocky shores. Unlike closely related species, this tropical plant grows rapidly across territories. New plants are formed on the peduncle at the point of contact with the ground.

Schizandra sundew (Drosera schizandra) is only known from one location, where it prefers heavily shaded sandy areas along streams. This sundew is characterized by the development of a notch at the top of old flat oval leaves.

Royal sundew (Drosera regia) is a rare species of the genus, reaching 30 cm in height and having dark pink flowers. This species is represented by only a few natural populations in South Africa. It has the largest leaves - their length in nature can reach from 60 cm to 2 m. In the Red List, it is classified as a rare species.

Peat bogs form over millions of years. Living bogs are highly moist, acidic, and very nutrient-poor, so that only very specialized plants can survive in such conditions, such as sundew and sphagnum moss species. For centuries, European farmers cut down blocks of peat, which they used as fuel. Then peat began to be cut down for agricultural purposes, sphagnum moss was used to line wire baskets, and riding (sphagnum) peat was used as a soil restorer; both moss and peat are valued for their high water-retaining properties. After harvesting the peat, the swamp dries up, the living flora begins to die.

AT traditional medicine sundew finds some use: outside, the juice of its glands is used to exterminate warts; inside it is used as a diaphoretic and diuretic, with fevers, for eye diseases. In Italy, sundew is used to make Rosolio liqueur, and used to be part of the so-called aqua auri.

Some enthusiasts maintain entire collections of original carnivorous plants in culture. Almost all types are easy to find on sale. Most sundews are evergreens, some of them go dormant in winter or summer. Sundews do best in glass or plastic terrariums.

Found from non-frost-resistant to withstanding long-term strong winter frosts. All of them, with the exception of a few species, prefer bright sun. The temperature should not be high, in a warm room the sundew will not survive the winter, so a cold winter is necessary. It is recommended to water with rainwater through a wide pan in which a pot with a plant is placed. Humidity is high, but it is better not to spray the plant. The soil is acidic, sphagnum moss or peat with the addition of sand. Preferred is seed propagation and propagation by leaf cuttings.

Rosyanka (lat. Drosera) is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Rosyankovye family. In the natural environment, they can be found in the mountains, swamps and sandstones in all corners of the planet (the largest part is concentrated in New Zealand and Australia), excluding Antarctica.

Stem herbaceous, thin or thickened. In most species, leaf plates are collected in a basal rosette. The surface and edges of the leaves are covered with large glandular hairs. When irritated, they secrete a sticky substance - transparent drops that look like dew. Thanks to which the plant received an official name.

Sundew - plant-predator

It is a carnivorous carnivorous plant. This group of the kingdom of flora not only delights researchers, but also served as a source for the creation of chilling tales, because the flight of violent fantasy is little based on facts.

Most plants get their nutrients from the soil, but some have to find other ways to survive. Plants that live in waterlogged, depleted soils suffer from a lack of nutrients. In order to "quench their hunger" in the course of evolution, they acquired devices for catching and digesting insects.

It has been experimentally proven that such plants (carnivores) grow and develop better than their counterparts that live thanks to root nutrition. This group is not numerous: 6 families with 500 species. All of them are united by a common goal - hunting. Although the prey is insignificant by human standards, and the process itself is silent, but the splendor of the fight between a plant and an insect in the struggle for survival leaves no one indifferent.

Among insectivorous plants, sundews are the most common. Among the people, she received nicknames: flycatcher, charming killer, sun dew (such a poetic name was given by the British).

Sundew and insects

Modified leaves are equipped with glands that secrete organic acids and digestive enzymes. They are unusually sensitive to contact: all the hairs quickly come into motion, "generously" stick around the victim with a sticky substance, bend in the central part, pushing the prey to the digestive villi.

The leaf gradually closes, forming a kind of stomach. It is worth noting that sundews react only to organic matter (when drops of water, sand, fallen leaves, etc. get in, the coagulation mechanism does not work). After the digestion of the insect, only the chitinous shell remains, which is carried away by the wind or washed away by rain. Then the leaf unfolds again in anticipation of the next victim. Charles Darwin experimentally established that the large-leaved sundew is able to digest pieces of cartilage and bones.

Sundew caught prey video:

A breathtaking sight of how helpless prey tries in vain to escape from the fetters of a predatory plant, only getting stronger into the sticky substance that covers the villi of the sundew.

When sundew blooms

The flowering period falls on the spring and summer months. A long flowering stem emerges from the center of the leaf rosette. The spike-shaped inflorescence consists of cream, white or bright pink flowers. each individual flower is provided with a double perianth, the corolla consists of 4-8 petals.

Growing conditions

Sundews in room conditions - an activity for enthusiasts. Plants are often found on sale, but in order to admire their mysterious splendor, you will need to create certain conditions. Most sundews are evergreens, some retire (in summer or winter period). Best of all, a charming killer will feel in a plastic or glass terrarium. The depth is required so that the plant protrudes beyond the edges.

Sundew care at home

Priming

The soil requires a poor, loose, acidic reaction. The optimal composition of the soil: 3 parts of peat, 2 parts of quartz sand and 1 part of perlite.

Lighting

Bright is required, but it must be protected from scorching sunlight. Place at some distance from the south window, a place where direct sunlight looks only in the evening will do. You can resort to artificial lighting.

Air temperature

For growing sundew in the warm season is 18 ° C, in winter - a range of 7-10 ° C. For species growing in the natural environment in northern latitudes, the figures may be lower: 13-18 ° C in summer and 5 ° C in winter.

Watering

The plant needs frequent, but neither waterlogging nor drying of the soil should be allowed. Avoid getting water droplets on the leaves of the plant - it is better to use bottom watering (place on a wide pan with water).

For irrigation, use rain or distilled water (tap water, even settled water, can kill the plant).

Air humidity

It's important to keep it high. You can’t spray the plant (you can humidify the air around the plant), periodically put it on a tray with wet moss, expanded clay or pebbles, use special air humidifiers.

top dressing

You don’t need to feed the plant yourself, but some flower growers sometimes recommend “feeding” the predator with ants or flies. In the warm season, take the sundew outside to provide an opportunity to obtain prey in a natural way.

rest period

For most, it falls in the winter. Growth rates slow down, leaves may die. The air temperature should be lowered, watering should be reduced (it is enough to moisten the substrate once a week), the lighting should remain bright.

How to transplant sundew

There is no need to transplant the plant immediately after purchase. First, the plant must adapt for a couple of weeks to new conditions.

Plant once every 2 years. The most favorable period is spring, when the sundew wakes up after dormancy, its growth is activated. For planting, choose a low (about 10 cm high) light (to prevent overheating of the soil) container with good drainage holes.

One plant is planted in one pot. Carefully remove from the old soil, holding the leaves. Spray the new soil with distilled water, make a depression and plant. A few days after the transplant, there will be no “dew” on the leaves, which is normal. Provide shading, can be covered with a cap to maintain high level humidity. It takes 7 days to adapt.

Growing sundew from seeds

You can even get the seeds of a plant at home - most types of flycatcher are capable of self-pollination. The flower closes to carry out this process.

Seeds numerous, very small, black.

To grow sundew from seeds, take a bowl with a sand-peat mixture, spread the seeds over the surface, spray the soil (in the future, use bottom watering so as not to “drown” small seeds).
Wrap with foil or cover with glass on top, provide heat (about 25 ° C) and diffused lighting.
Shoots will appear in about 2-5 weeks.
Keep the temperature between 22-25°C.
The first pair of leaves will be non-carnivorous, when 4 leaves appear, plant them in separate containers.
Then you take care of it, as you would for an adult plant.

Vegetative propagation

The transplant procedure can be combined with the division of the bush. The mother plant is divided into a couple of parts, and daughter outlets (if any) are also separated. Sow in separate containers.

Propagation by leaf cuttings is possible. Cut the leaf, divide it into segments, root in wet sphagnum moss. Top with foil or glass. Provide the same conditions as when germinating seeds. Sprouts will appear in a couple of months - transplant into a separate pot.

You can root flower shoots. They will have to be cut before the flower appears. Cut closer to the base, root with greenhouse conditions.

Diseases and pests

The main problem in growing sundew is root rot. This happens from waterlogging of the soil and too low temperatures. The plant slows down the growth rate, the stem and leaves darken. Most often, the plant dies.

May be affected by botrytis (gray rot). An emergency transplant is required. Remove affected areas, treat with fungicide.

Of the pests, aphids can disturb - treat with an insecticide.

Useful properties of the plant

The juice of the plant is used externally to treat warts. Inside taken as a diuretic and diaphoretic for fever. The decoction is used in the treatment of whooping cough, cough.

Based on the juice, preparations are made to treat inflammation of the eyes.

The plant is an ingredient in the Italian liqueur Rosolio.

Types of sundew with photo and video

Sundew Cape Drosera capensis

One of the most beautiful and popular species. The plant is about 12 cm high. It is equipped with atypical tentacles, whitish hairs, with which it captures prey. During the flowering period, a spike-shaped inflorescence appears with small white flowers.

Sundew round-leaved or common sundew Drosera rotundifolia

It has basal leaves of a rounded shape, covered with reddish tentacles. The flower-bearing stem reaches a height of 20 cm. It blooms in mid-summer. Flowers are white or pinkish. Folk names of this species: Tsar's eyes, dewdrop, dewdrop, solar dew, God's dew.

Sundew English Drosera anglica

The leaf plates of the lanceolate form are about 10 cm long, directed upwards. The height of the flowering stem is 10-25 cm. It typically blooms in mid-summer, the flowers are whitish. Has healing properties. In medicine, the entire ground part is used. When the plant acquires a dark brown, almost blackened hue, it cannot be used due to its high toxicity.

Sundew filiform Drosera filiformis

Narrow leaves rise up to a height of about half a meter, thanks to the glandular coating, they shimmer and shimmer.

Has subspecies:

Sundew filiform variety filiform (Drosera filiformis var. filiformis) - in the natural environment is found in the United States.
A variety of Trace (Drosera filiformis var. tracyi) - it can be found on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

Sundew Adel Drosera adelae

A low plant with elongated lanceolate leaves. More resistant to direct sunlight.

Rosyanka offspring Drosera prolifera

The diameter of the leaf rosette is about 6 cm, the leaves are heart-shaped, attached on long petioles. The leaves are deep green, turn yellow when exposed to light, and turn orange to purple when cold. It grows quickly and easily: new plants appear at the points of contact of the flower-bearing stem with the soil. It has a unique (for sundew) method of reproduction - antennae, similar to strawberries.

Sundew Schizandra Drosera schizandra

The leaf blades are similar to lobes with an oval top; a notch runs along the leaf. When growing, keep in mind that the leaves are thin, fragile, they are easy to damage. Provide shade, good aeration of the soil and high humidity.

Sundew royal Drosera regia

Rare species found in South Africa. It has the largest leaves: from 60 cm to 2 m long. The flowers are dark pink.

Rosyanka intermediate Drosera intermedia

Considered the most unpretentious plant from sundews in cultivation and care, does not need a dormant period. Leaflets are lanceolate, curved, due to the dense coating of glands, the color appears red. The height is no more than 8 cm. Flowering occurs in summer, the flowers are white.

Sundew Drosera binata

The height of the plant reaches 60 cm. It is distinguished by forked, branching, narrow leaves. It does not have a dormant period, it blooms almost the whole year (flowers are white).

Alicia's sundew Drosera aliciae

Native to the subtropics of South Africa. The oblong leaves are sessile, arranged in several tiers, forming a round rosette. The color of the leaves is green-yellow with red tentacles. Flowers pinkish.

Burman's sundew Drosera burmannii

The leaves are wedge-shaped, reach a length of 10 cm, collected in a basal rosette. Racemose inflorescences consist of 1-3 white corollas. Perfectly propagated by seeds.

Sundew hairy Drosera capillaris

The spoon-shaped leaves form a dense basal rosette, the height of the plant is 2-4 cm, under ideal conditions it reaches a height of 7 cm. Flowering occurs in April, the flowers are of a pale pink hue.

Sundew Glanduliger Drosera glanduligera

The blade-leaves are attached to oblong petioles, forming a spherical basal rosette. The mechanism of catching insects is interesting: with the help of the movement of the shoots, the plant instantly “catapults” the victim to the center of the leaf.

Sundew petiolate photo

The basal rosette is formed by numerous leaf plates. They are oblong, light green in color, the top is in the shape of a coin, covered with tentacles. The diameter of the outlet is 5-30 cm, the height of the plant is up to 15 cm. It feels great when temperature regime+30-40 °C.

The name was obtained due to the similarity of the inflorescence with representatives of the Cistus family. This is a snow-white flower with a greenish core. There can also be bright colors: pink, crimson, red, orange. The height of the stem is about 40 cm. It is covered with narrow oblong leaves (2-5 cm long).

Orda sundew Drosera ordensis

The basal rosette is dense, 8-30 cm in diameter. Petioles are long, wide, juicy green, ending in a rounded leaf plate with tentacles. Blooms in December-April.

Sundew bulbous Drosera bulbosa

Oblong leaves with a rounded top are spread out in a single-tier rosette up to 6 cm in diameter, the leaves are tightly adjacent to the soil surface. Flowering occurs in April-June.

In Siberia, the European part of Russia, in the Far East, three types of plants can be found: intermediate sundew, round-leaved sundew, and English sundew. They form tightly folded buds and can be stored in a breathable bag with a little sphagnum moss for 4-5 months.

June 20th, 2013

These plants belong to different families and live in a wide variety of climatic zones - from the arctic tundra to the equatorial jungle. But they have one thing in common - they are all insectivorous predators, whose main business of life is hunting. And even if the prey is small by our standards, and the hunting process itself is silent, in these dramatic fights between plant and animal, the attentive observer discovers the great law of the perpetual motion of Nature - the struggle for survival.

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As you know, most plants get the necessary nutrients from the soil. Some of them chose a different path and, in the course of their evolution, acquired amazing devices for catching and then digesting insects. We must make a reservation right away that such an exotic way of subsistence was chosen not out of a whim, but out of necessity, because the swampy soils on which most plant predators live are very scarce and can only provide them with a “living wage”

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Experiments show that plants that live only at the expense of root nutrition, unlike their counterparts that receive animal food, are noticeably stunted in growth and are in an extremely depressed state. Plants living on waterlogged soils suffer from a lack of various substances: phosphorus, potassium, and especially nitrogen. In a natural desire to somehow replenish this “starvation ration”, plants have developed various trapping organs, which are nothing more than modified leaves, equipped with glands that secrete digestive enzymes and organic acids, allowing the plant to assimilate the caught prey. It is easy to assume that carnivorous plants - as a kind of botanical curiosity - are quite rare in nature. However, it is not. This group of plants includes almost 500 species from 6 families, various representatives of which are found in all parts of the world. Although the greatest species diversity of such predators, of course, is inherent in the tropics.

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One of the most beautiful sundews is the Cape sundew (Drosera capensis). Its stem, usually reaching several centimeters in height, bears thin, elongated leaves. The plant gradually develops numerous, very attractive flowers. However, the Cape sundew is a charming, but convinced predator, patiently waiting for prey. The digestion process usually takes several days.

Sundew glands secrete a liquid containing organic acids (mainly benzoic and formic) and digestive enzymes such as pepsin, which break down insect proteins into simpler compounds that the plant can absorb. Charles Darwin, who conducted numerous observations and experiments with large-leaved sundew, discovered the amazing ability of this plant to digest even pieces of bone and cartilage. From the insects caught by sundew, only chitinous covers, insoluble by enzymes, remain, which are soon washed off from the surface of the trapping leaf by rain or blown away by the wind.

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All sundews are insectivorous plants. The sticky substance produced by the leaves contains the alkaloid coniine, which has a paralytic effect on insects, and digestive enzymes. After the insect is caught, the edges of the leaf are closed, covering it entirely. The speed of leaf folding in some species of sundews is quite significant, especially in Drosera burmannii.

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This method of plant nutrition makes it possible, under conditions of depleted soils, to absorb from the insect during its digestion such substances useful for the plant as sodium, potassium, magnesium salts, phosphorus and nitrogen. After the insect has been digested (usually it takes several days), the leaf opens again.

The mechanism of leaf folding is selective and reacts only to organic food, while accidental exposures in the form of a drop of water or a fallen leaf do not cause a digestive process.

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Three species are found in the European part of Russia, Siberia, and the Far East: round-leaved sundew, king's eyes, sundew, and Rosichka (Drosera rotundifolia L.); sundew English or long-leaved (Drosera anglica Huds.); sundew intermediate (Drosera intermedia Hayne.). These sundews, which grow in temperate climates, endure the cold winter by forming special densely built wintering buds. Such buds can be stored in an airtight bag in a small amount of sphagnum for four to five months.

English sundew (Drosera anglica Huds.) grows on sphagnum bogs often together with round-leaved sundew. This species is widely distributed in areas with a temperate climate in North America (Canada, USA), Europe, in the European part of Russia, Siberia, the Far East (Kamchatka, Primorye, Sakhalin), Japan. In some parts of the range, it is endangered due to the violation of natural habitats; it is included in the Red Books and lists of rare plants in some regions of Russia.

The filiform sundew (Drosera filiformis) is a beautiful plant growing up to 50 cm in height, it develops upright linear leaves that shine and shimmer. In this species, two varieties are distinguished - sundew filamentous variety filamentous (Drosera filiformis var. filiformis), growing from the northeastern and mid-Atlantic parts of the United States to a small area on the Florida peninsula; and sundew filamentous variety of Trace (Drosera filiformis var. tracyi) - from the northern part of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The filiform sundew is most endangered in the southern part of its North American range, where acid swamps are exploited in the lowland grass savannahs.

Other sundews are a group of closely related tropical species endemic to a small patch of rainforest in Queensland, Australia.

In folk medicine, sundew finds some use: outside, the juice of its glands is used to exterminate warts; inside it is used as a diaphoretic and diuretic, with fevers, for eye diseases. In Italy, sundew is used to make Rosolio liqueur, and used to be part of the so-called aqua auri.

Found from non-frost-resistant to withstanding prolonged severe winter frosts. All of them, with the exception of a few species, prefer bright sun. The temperature should not be high, in a warm room the sundew will not survive the winter, so a cold winter is necessary. It is recommended to water with rainwater through a wide pan in which a pot with a plant is placed. Humidity is high, but it is better not to spray the plant. The soil is acidic, sphagnum moss or peat with the addition of sand. Seed propagation and propagation by leaf cuttings are preferred.