Spoonleaf Sundew

Drosera

 intermedia

One of Florida’s five sundews, the Spoonleaf Sundew (Drosera intermedia) is a widespread carnivorous plant of the eastern United States and parts of Canada. A rosette of sticky spoon-shaped leaves is topped by small white flowers. Unlike other sundews, the flower stem does not grow straight upward from the basal rosette, but at an angle. The red stalked mucilaginous glands on the leaves give the Sundew a dewy appearance, hence the name Drosera which means dewy. These glands secrete a sweet nectar which attracts insects that get trapped and die in the “dew.” Since the Sundew grows in very wet habitats which tend to be infertile, digesting the insects provides additional nutrients for the plant.

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