Carnivore carpet

I wanted to prove to everyone that ‘keeping it simple’ was a powerful motive. At the height of the UG (Utricularia graminifolia) hype, many people were throwing around lots of rules on how to not grow it. I decided to create an aquascape that featured a beautiful tight and healthy UG carpet by keeping it simple and not overcomplicating things.

“Don’t dose fertiliser or your UG will die,” or “Aquasoil kills UG,” and “Nitrogen kills UG!” were some of the statements people were actively preaching on social media. I wanted to prove them wrong, and I did. I decided to dose a moderate amount of nutrients, including nitrogen and phosphorus. I also used a nutrient-rich aquasoil powder that I picked due to the grain size, knowing that UG roots are short. From my experience, UG thrives in both high and low nutrient environments. The only advice I would give to someone asking how to grow a beautiful UG carpet would be to plant tiny portions deep into the substrate at the start. Soft water is beneficial as most carnivorous plants require this, and do lots of water changes in the first month to mitigate high ammonia levels.