Carnivorous Drosera Capensis Sundew

Drosera capensis – Cape Sundew

A beautiful and vigorous carnivorous plant producing long, elegant leaves covered in glistening droplets that attract, capture and digest small insect prey.

Drosera capensis, commonly known as the Cape Sundew, is one of the best-known and easiest sundews to grow. Native to the Cape region of South Africa, it combines fascinating insect-catching behaviour with attractive foliage and excellent adaptability.

Its ease of cultivation makes it an ideal introduction to carnivorous plants, while mature specimens remain impressive enough to earn a place in established collections.

How It Catches Insects

The long, narrow leaves are covered with hundreds of specialised tentacles, each tipped with a sparkling droplet of sticky mucilage.

Although these droplets look like morning dew, they are produced by the plant specifically to help capture insect prey.

Small flies and other insects attracted to the leaves become stuck to the mucilage. Nearby tentacles gradually move towards the captured insect, and the leaf itself can slowly curl around larger prey.

Digestive enzymes then break down the insect, allowing the plant to absorb nutrients that are scarce in the nutrient-poor soils where sundews naturally grow.

Colour & Growth

Drosera capensis produces an attractive rosette of long, strap-like leaves, with mature plants gradually developing a more upright appearance.

Healthy plants grown in strong light can develop beautiful red or pink tentacles, contrasting against the green leaves and clear sparkling droplets.

The amount of red colouration varies according to the individual plant and growing conditions, with stronger light generally producing richer colours.

Mature plants can also produce tall flower stems carrying numerous delicate pink flowers above the carnivorous foliage.

Growing Information

Light: Bright light to full sun. Plenty of light encourages strong growth, good production of sticky "dew" and richer red colouration.

Water: Keep permanently moist. Stand the pot in approximately 1–2cm of rainwater, distilled water or reverse-osmosis water. Avoid hard tap water.

Compost: Grow in nutrient-poor carnivorous plant compost. Never use ordinary multipurpose compost, enriched compost or conventional fertiliser.

Feeding: Additional feeding is normally unnecessary. The plant readily captures small flies, fungus gnats and other insects when available. Never feed meat or other human food to the leaves.

Dormancy: Drosera capensis does not require a true cold winter dormancy. Growth may slow during the cooler and darker winter months but will resume strongly as light levels and temperatures increase.

Temperature: A very adaptable species that grows well in a bright greenhouse, conservatory or sunny windowsill.

Frost: Best protected from prolonged freezing conditions. Established plants can sometimes regrow from their roots following brief cold exposure, but D. capensis should not be treated as reliably frost hardy in the UK.

Plant Supplied

You will receive an established Drosera capensis of the type shown and as described on the purchase option.

As these are living plants, size, leaf number, colour and the amount of visible "dew" will naturally vary according to season and growing conditions.

Sundews can temporarily lose some of their sticky droplets during postage or following a change in environment. Once settled into suitable light and water conditions, healthy new leaves should begin producing fresh mucilage.

Drosera capensis is a vigorous species and, given suitable conditions, can develop into an impressive mature plant and produce numerous flowers and seeds.

Identification Note

These plants are offered as the standard form of Drosera capensis, commonly known as the Cape Sundew.

This is distinct from forms such as Drosera capensis ‘Alba’, which lack much of the characteristic red pigmentation. Unless specifically stated, no particular locality or named cultivar is being claimed.

Botanical name: Drosera capensis
Common name: Cape Sundew
Origin: South Africa
Plant type: Carnivorous perennial
Growth habit: Upright rosette
Trap type: Sticky flypaper trap
Colour: Green with red/pink tentacles
Flowers: Pink
Dormancy: No true winter dormancy required
Difficulty: Easy
Water: Rainwater / RO / distilled
Position: Bright light / sun
Frost hardy: No
Suitable for beginners: Yes – one of the best beginner carnivorous plants