A feature of almost all conservatories is that they are built facing southwards, which enables you to get the best of the sunlight throughout the year, but especially in summer.
However, while this can be a wonderful sun trap in which to sit and relax, as well as a place to grow plants that might not thrive so readily outdoors, this does also mean you may have an issue with flying insects, many of which seemingly cannot wait to fly in the moment you open a window.
While pollinating insects may be good news, threatening wasps and germ-spreading flies are not what you want. But, rather than resorting to fly spray, you can develop a natural solution with some carnivorous plants.
As Gardener’s World notes, conservatories are ideal places to grow such plants. Some, such as the Venus fly trap, are tropical, while others, like pitcher plants or sundews, live in temperate climates (indeed, sundews grow naturally in the UK).
The temperate plants need plenty of summer sun, but may also need keeping in the shade in winter, while a tropical plant might need to come indoors. It is also important to water them with rainwater, as tapwater is toxic, as well as not overfeeding them – let them do the catching themselves.
Each kind of plant has a different mechanism for catching bugs. The Venus fly trap has the most spectacular, with a V-shaped leaf that snaps shut to entomb, crush and ultimately digest its victim.
A sundew is a prettier but slower-moving plant, with its sticky tendrils ensnaring the victim and the leaf slowly enfolding and devouring it. A pitcher plant has no moving parts at all, instead acting as an inescapable water trap in which all that fall drown and decompose.
As well as keeping down the number of bugs, such plants can also add to the interesting flora that you have in your conservatory, making it a fascinating place to be – although for flies that interest could prove deadly.