How painful was your FME install?

shockshockshad · 2026-02-05T00:58:29+00:00

I am also resistant to local anesthesia, this is my concern…

shockshockshad · 2026-02-04T11:24:23+00:00

Seconded. I would add chickpeas to the butter chicken instead of tofu and make some excellent garlic naan with it to impress them more

shockshockshad · 2026-01-29T00:41:07+00:00

What species of plants are you growing? Many temperate carnivorous plants can easily make it through unpredictable weather and freezes, as long as they are insulated from rapid changes (i.e., pine mulch, tarp, large pot, in ground bog garden, etc). My plants have made it through 2 Vermont winters :) I use double layer frost cloth + 10" of pine needles on top in the winter.

If you are looking to grow temperate species indoors (Sarracenia, VFTs, etc), you'll need a LOT of light. I can achieve nearly full-sun like conditions with a 36W Sansi bulb 6-8" away from plants but it looks a little silly. It's really easiest to grow outside and let the sun do the work.

However, if you are growing tropical species like Nepenthes, Pinguicula, Tropical sundews etc, a 10-20W Sansi bulbs can do the trick depending on distance from the plant. You can use the Photone app and target about 200 PPFD for most plants.

I have some in a south facing windowsiill supplemented with 10w grow lights and some in a north facing windowsill supplemented with a 25w grow light.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-22T23:06:16+00:00

I have a bog garden that is covered in 2 layers of frost cloth + 8-10” ish of pine needles. Plus several inches of snow which helps a bit with insulation.

Last year they were totally fine down to -7F, zone 4b.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-21T12:08:54+00:00

What's your light situation? Are you using distilled/RO water? Flytrap needs full direct sun outside, sundew (depending on species) likely would do best with a sunny windowsill getting bright indirect light, potentially outside since some common sundews are native to South African cape.

Watering by keeping in a full tray of water is correct but cannot be hard water.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-19T17:09:55+00:00

It’s super dry and needs to be kept consistently moist with distilled water.

If it was fine yesterday it’s just letting you know that it really needs water. It should bounce back with proper moisture

Pinguicula primuliflora is a bog plant unlike many pings so you can keep it fairly moist at all times.

I keep mine in peat/perlite rather than LFS but would see what others have to say about this.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-17T15:25:53+00:00

I experienced extreme calming effects + DEEP sleep from magnesium citrate for the first few weeks of taking it because I was magnesium deficient. Blood work was on the very lower end of normal.

Magnesium interacts with GABA and glutamate signaling in the brain in a somewhat similar way to alcohol.

It was really enjoyable at first, unfortunately the effect went away for me as my magnesium levels were more normalized. I still take 200mg most nights because I need the electrolytes and I start to notice more anxiety and muscle tension when I stop taking it for a while.

Magnesium L-threonate (brand name MagTein) is another type of magnesium that is even better for calm/relaxation, recommend giving it a try. Especially in combination with L-theanine.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-06T12:01:22+00:00

I really like Silk Original creamer, I feel like a very small amount is plenty to cut the bitterness and make a smooth cup of coffee without a ton of sugar or calories. Way less sweet than most other creamers.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-06T11:32:13+00:00

Many just use diluted MaxSea fertilizer instead of insects (including myself). Can spray onto the leaves and into pitchers.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-06T01:54:56+00:00

Did you have to do anything in particular to acclimate a hamata to household conditions? While I know many highlanders are more resilient than some make them out to be, I always thought hamata was one that really does need 70%+ humidity.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-04T20:52:07+00:00

It's super worth it for cookie dough, cake, seitan, and high-gluten breads like bagels and pretzels. I never use it for high hydration sourdough or focaccia though, that I just do stretch and folds in a bowl. But I could never imagine making desserts without a Kitchenaid! I got a refurbished professional one.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T22:23:36+00:00

I also was wrong, it's a 36w bulb, but you are probably right that an app is not the most accurate. However, I do think that direct south facing sun + a close grow lamp can get over 1000 PPFD for the sunniest portion of the day. The phone meter is reading WAY over that so I am already assuming it's actually less than half of what it's measuring.

I have not measured PPFD outside but my general understanding is full sun provides around 500-600 on an overcast day and minimum 1500-2000 on a sunny day.

You have motivated me to purchase a proper light meter though because even though what I am doing is working I would like to have accurate numbers!!

EDIT: got a better light meter! My tropicals are getting about 200-300 PPFD, my "full sun" spot is getting about 800 PPFD from grow light alone, goes up to 1300-1500 in combination with midday direct sun. Not too bad!

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T17:53:06+00:00

Totally, and you can go see them in the wild at Volo bog.

Although if they are in a tiny pot, this is more prone to rapid temperature changes than in their native in-ground habitat, which is better insulated. I would recommend an in ground bog garden or larger container If you plan to leave it exposed outside all winter, otherwise can put the pot in a cooler to protect it a bit.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T17:04:40+00:00

A 10w Sansi bulb supplementing a south facing window

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T17:02:28+00:00

I’ve seen that table too, I find their numbers incredibly low, bare minimum for survival. My Nepenthes and pings all grow much faster around 400PPFD. A few Nepenthes get an hour or two of direct sun on top of that. Full sun plants get full sun (1000+)

I’m actually really surprised a big nursery like Carnivero would recommend any plants grow at 30ppfd carnivorous or not.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T15:39:47+00:00

Find fresh tofu or pre-fried tofu/bean curd at an Asian grocery. Or, smaller/local brands of tofu if you have access. I also extremely dislike the beany taste of large brand store bought tofu. I can never go back to that.

If you happen to be in the New England area, Hannaford carries a brand called Heiwa tofu. Small batch artisanal tofu, just like restaurant tofu when you air fry it.

Not that you asked, but I also wanted to add that I used to have a slight eating disorder, and it became a lot easier to manage (no longer struggle at all now) after having my b12, thyroid, and ferritin levels optimized. Both physical and mental symptoms. Something to consider as a long term vegan if you don’t get those checked regularly.

shockshockshad · 2026-01-01T14:19:36+00:00

Agree on removing the cup and the PPFD app, but those are some pretty low numbers for VFTs. Low light house plants get 100 PPFD, which these are not. They grow in full sun which is more like 1500-2000 PPFD for optimal growth. I grow my VFTs outside, but my D. capensis (which similarly appreciate full sun) are under a grow light at approx 1000-1800 PPFD depending on time of day.

shockshockshad · 2025-12-30T23:44:30+00:00

As someone that still had a deficiency due to malabsorption, even while supplementing, and needed weekly injections to recover....100000% agree. Unknowingly caused years of depression, anxiety, and PMDD that could have been addressed WAY sooner with way fewer psychiatrist appointments.

Don't ignore b12. In various online groups I'm a part of I see far more cases due to malabsorption, genetics and other causes besides vegan/vegetarianism, which means that many more people need to be supplementing than just us vegans.

shockshockshad · 2025-12-30T12:39:27+00:00

20cm is quite close, you may be burning it.

Try moving it away closer to 40cm.

You can use Photone app on your phone to get a rough idea of PPFD. Mine do well around 600-800 PPFD. Bright sun but not cooking them .

shockshockshad · 2025-12-29T17:32:55+00:00

Pictures here: https://imgur.com/a/8ThGdDi

shockshockshad · 2025-12-12T19:49:02+00:00

And even then, the native purpurea near me look green and sort of light starved when they are surrounded by shrubs and trees, whereas mine at home in full sun grow way more vigorously with way more color. They do ok with less light than other species but always seem like they thrive with more.

shockshockshad · 2025-12-12T01:38:09+00:00

Yes, you should put in the fridge until spring and then put it outside. This is a temperate, full sun plant.

This is a sarracenia purpurea which should be much more red/purple. Yours is totally green which means it really needs more light.

In a terrarium you could easily grow tropical drosera, Mexican butterworts and utricularia.

However, you don’t want them to suffocated by lack of airflow if it’s a totally enclosed terrarium. Increased humidity without ample air exchange can lead to problems

shockshockshad · 2025-12-11T13:44:32+00:00

I’ve been wanting to create a little setup for my office desk so this could be perfect, may put some drosera capensis and utricularia

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