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Species library › Utricularia › Utricularia firmula
Carnivorous Partly documented

Utricularia firmula

A small, annual terrestrial bladderwort found across tropical and southern Africa and Madagascar, from sea level to about 2,100 m. It grows in damp sandy or peaty soil in grassland, on wet mossy rocks and seeps, and often as a weed in rice fields, flowering towards the end of the wet season. In cultivation, treat it as a sun-loving bog annual and keep seed going from year to year.

Utricularia firmula
Photo: Herbarium of the University of Coimbra (COI) , CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Wet sandy or peaty soil in open grassland, seepages over rock, wet mossy rocks, river banks and rice fields. Observations in KwaZulu-Natal come from seeps in Pondoland sandstone sourveld.

Sea level to about 2,100 m; South African records are mostly below 500 m, with one Guinean specimen at about 1,000 m.

West tropical AfricaWest-central tropical AfricaEast tropical AfricaSouth tropical AfricaSouthern AfricaMadagascar

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY 4.0 licence, unmodified.