This episode is what happens when two people’s loves for venus flytraps, spooky season, and movie musicals collide. 

Yes, we’re doing nerdy Halloween horticulture by analyzing the representation of carnivorous plants in the classic musical Little Shop of Horrors—specifically the 1986 movie version. If you  haven’t seen the show, don’t worry; we set the stage for you and save any late-story spoilers for the very end. For the most part, we’re interested in one question: based on our knowledge of real-world carnivorous plants, how reasonable were Seymore’s guesses when he first tried to care for Audrey II? This requires, of course, an exploration of Venus flytraps’ habitat and habits, how they reproduce, and of the care they need to thrive in our homes. 

The movie does raise one more hypothetical, and I’ll put this in code for our listeners who still need to watch it: that ending. Would it really have worked? We get a buzz out of exploring the idea.

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Credits

Website Design and Illustration by Sophia Alladin

Intro and Outro Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/when-my-ukulele-plays

License code: GWOIMMBAS15FG6PH

Citations

Little Shop of Horrors

Oz, F. (Director). (1986). Little shop of horrors. The Geffen Company.

Venus flytrap Overview

Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula). (n.d.). iNaturalist. https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/52666-Dionaea-muscipula

Venus flytraps benefit from fires

Venus Flytrap. (n.d.). National Wildlife Federation. https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Plants-and-Fungi/Venus-Flytrap

A chemical signal from the flytrap’s prey stimulates the secretion of enzymes.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center – the University of Texas at Austin. (n.d.). https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=dimu4

Overwintering your venus flytrap

Little Shop of Horrors. (2025, January 12). Overwintering Venus flytraps. Littleshopofhorrors.co.uk. https://www.littleshopofhorrors.co.uk/over-wintering-venus-flytraps/ 

Timestamps

00:39 Introduction

01:35 What’s Growing On: Sean’s Winter Prep

02:20 What’s Growing On: Erin’s Tomatoes and Greenhouse Build

03:10 Sean’s Pumpkin-Deer Showdown

05:48 Water Break

06:00 Setting the Scene: Little Shop of Horrors

07:44 How Carnivorous Plants Eat

11:26 Can a Carnivorous Plant Survive on Human Blood?

12:46 Venus Fly Trap Etymology

15:50 How the Venus Fly Trap Grows

18:35 Audrey II’s Structure vs. Venus Fly Trap Structure

21:39 Taking Care of Audrey II vs. a Venus Fly Trap

32:24 Overwintering Your Venus Fly Trap

34:51 SPOILER WATER BREAK

35:20 Propagating a Venus Fly Trap vs. Audrey II

41:28 Ethical Purchasing of Venus Fly Traps

42:49 Buying Cool Cultivated Varieties

43:33 Can You Kill a Plant with Electrocution?

47:29 Conclusion and Contact Us