''Drosera nidiformis'' is tropical

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n sundew. This plant is indigenous to

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

.The Carnivorous Plant FAQ: African and Madagascan ''Drosera'' species
/ref> Its classification is ambiguous; some sources refer to it as a synonym of '' Drosera dielsiana'' whereas others treat it as a separate species. This plant was previously known as ''Drosera'' "maglisburg".

Description

Leaves on mature specimens are obovate and range from 1 to 2 cm in length. Petioles can grow 1.5 to a maximum of approximately 5 cm. ''D. nidiformis'' exhibits a reddish tint if grown in the correct light conditions. Upon capture of prey, the leaf curls around it to bring it into contact with as many digestive glands as possible. This is an example of thigmotropism, or acting in response to a touch stimulus.

Growth habit

Because it is from a subtropical climate, ''D. nidiformis'' does not tolerate cold temperatures and will not enter

dormancy Dormancy is a period in an organism's life cycle when growth, development, and (in animals) physical activity are temporarily stopped. This minimizes metabolic activity and therefore helps an organism to conserve energy. Dormancy tends to be clo ...

. It is a

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

. ''D. nidiformis'', like most

carnivorous plant Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans Protozoa (singular: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a group of single-celled eukaryot ...

s, grows in nutrient-poor,

acid In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...

ic soil. If all growing conditions are not ideal, flowering has an exhausting effect on the plant.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5308533 nidiformis Carnivorous plants of Africa Flora of KwaZulu-Natal