Cape sundew

Description:

Is a small rosette-forming carnivorous species of perennial sundew native to the Cape in South Africa. D. capensis produces strap-like leaves, up to 3.5 cm long and 0.5 cm wide, which, as in all sundews, are covered in brightly coloured tentacles which secrete a sticky mucilage that traps arthropods. When insects are first trapped, the leaves roll lengthwise toward the center. This aids digestion by bringing more digestive glands in contact with the prey. This movement is surprisingly fast, with completion in thirty minutes. The plant has a tendency to retain the dead leaves of previous seasons, and the main stem of the plant can become quite long and woody with time. In early summer or late spring, D. capensis produces multiple, small, five-petaled pink flowers at the end of scapes which can be up to 30 cm tall. Flowers individually open in the morning and close by mid afternoon, lasting just one day each with the next one up the scape opening the following day.

Habitat:

Because of its size, easy to grow nature, and the copious amounts of seed it produces, it has become one of the most common sundews in cultivation. Drosera capensis can be easily propagated through a variety of methods including seed, leaf cuttings, and root cuttings. It is not easily killed by temperature extremes of a short duration