the_drew•6d agoMost Upvoted

Picked up a book on carnivorous plants at a garage sale last Saturday

Found this old paperback for 50 cents. Turned out sundews can catch and digest over 500 insects in a single season. That's more than my tomato plants got eaten all summer. Had no idea those little sticky things were that effective. Anyone else find weird plant facts in random places?

2 comments

2 Comments

finleyl556d ago

Maybe it's just me but that 500 insect fact makes me wonder if carnivorous plants evolved that way because of really poor soil, like they're basically the opposite of a tomato plant needing all those extra nutrients. Idk, it's wild to think a little sundew can hunt better than a whole tomato vine with all those flowers and leaves trying to attract pollinators. Garage sale finds are the best for random deep dives into stuff you'd never Google on your own.

owens.willow6d ago

hunt better than a whole tomato vine" lol that's such a wild comparison but it makes sense when you think about it. @finleyl55 you ever look at how those sundew leaves actually move? i saw a timelapse once and it's creepy how fast they curl up compared to a tomato plant just sitting there doing nothing. but here's what gets me - do you think carnivorous plants are technically smarter than regular plants? like they have to actively sense prey and react, not just passively wait for sun and water. feels like they're running a whole different operating system than my poor basil plant that just gives up if i forget to water it for one day lmao