Carnivorous Plant Societies and Resources
Carnivorous Plant Societies and Resources
Clubs, guides, books, and links I personally recommend.
I started the Colorado Carnivorous Plant Society back in 2003, and societies are still the best way I know to meet other growers, trade plants, and learn from people who have been at this a long time. Below you will find the groups I know of in the US and around the world, plus the guides, books, and websites I send people to when they want to learn more.
International Groups
Open to growers anywhere in the world.
Worldwide
International Carnivorous Plant Society (ICPS)
The biggest one, founded in 1972. Publishes the quarterly Carnivorous Plant Newsletter and is the official registration authority for carnivorous plant cultivar names. If you join only one society, make it this one.
Visit SiteUSA, Conservation
North American Sarracenia Conservancy
A nonprofit dedicated to preserving the wild habitats and genetic diversity of Sarracenia and other North American carnivorous plants, with a seed bank and conservation collection. Venus flytraps are a prime example of what they are fighting to save. Wild flytraps now survive in only a small area of the Carolinas, and the NASC works on rescues, reintroductions, and protecting the habitat they have left.
Visit SiteWorldwide, Conservation
IUCN Carnivorous Plant Specialist Group
The volunteer scientists and experts who assess carnivorous plants for the IUCN Red List of threatened species.
Visit SiteUnited States and Canada
Regional societies and groups with meetings, shows, plant sales, and online forums.
San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Bay Area Carnivorous Plant Society
The oldest carnivorous plant society in the US, started in 1988 by a group that included the late Peter D'Amato. Holds meetings and a yearly show and sale.
Visit SiteLos Angeles, CA
Los Angeles Carnivorous Plant Society
Running since 1994, with meetings around Pasadena that are open to everyone.
Visit SiteLos Angeles and Orange County, CA
Southern California Carnivorous Plant Enthusiasts
Hosts one of the biggest carnivorous plant shows and sales anywhere, every June.
Visit SiteSan Diego, CA
San Diego Carnivorous Plant Society
Started in 2013 and based in Balboa Park, where members built and maintain a carnivorous plant bog. Free monthly meetings and a big show and sale every August.
Visit SiteSacramento, CA
Bromeliad and Carnivorous Plant Society
Meets monthly at the Sacramento Garden and Arts Center, covering growing, propagation, and habitat.
Visit SitePortland, OR
Oregon Carnivorous Plant Community
An informal group with no dues or membership, connecting growers across Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Meets monthly in Portland.
Visit SiteColorado
Colorado Carnivorous Plant Society
The society I founded in 2003. It is not active right now, but if you are a Colorado grower and want to help bring it back, reach out.
Visit SiteSt. Louis, MO
St. Louis Carnivorous Plant Society
Meets at the Missouri Botanical Garden and puts on a show and sale there every June.
Visit SiteNorth and South Carolina
Carolina Carnivorous Plant Society
A Facebook group for growers in the Carolinas and the rest of the Southeast, with meetups and plant swaps.
Visit GroupNew York to Virginia
Mid-Atlantic Carnivorous Plant Society
Founded in 2017 and growing fast, with meetings, field trips to bogs, auctions, and a yearly show.
Visit SiteNew England
New England Carnivorous Plant Society
Started in 2003 and based around the Roger Williams Park Botanical Center in Providence, with regular meetings and a fall show.
Visit SiteCanada
Carnivorous Plant Society of Canada
An active online forum for Canadian growers, in English and French, with a seed bank, plant sales and trades, and a database of Canada's native carnivorous plants.
Visit SiteEurope
Most of these sites are in the local language, but the plants speak for themselves.
United Kingdom
The Carnivorous Plant Society
Founded in London in 1978 and the only UK charity dedicated to carnivorous plants. Runs a seed bank and welcomes members worldwide.
Visit SiteGermany, Austria, Switzerland
Gesellschaft für Fleischfressende Pflanzen (G.F.P.)
The German speaking society, founded in 1984, with regional groups meeting across all three countries and the journal Das Taublatt.
Visit SiteNetherlands
Carnivora
The Dutch society, hosting the 2026 ICPS Conference at Hortus botanicus Leiden.
Visit SiteFrance
Dionée
The French speaking society, founded in 1983 and publishing its own quarterly magazine.
Visit SiteItaly
Associazione Italiana Piante Carnivore (AIPC)
The Italian society, publisher of AIPC Magazine and a series of special issues on new species.
Visit SiteCzech Republic
Darwiniana
The oldest Czech carnivorous plant society, publisher of the magazine Trifid.
Visit SiteAsia and Australia
Including what is probably the oldest carnivorous plant society in the world.
Tokyo, Japan
Insectivorous Plant Society
Founded in November 1949, likely the oldest carnivorous plant society anywhere.
Visit SiteJapan
Japanese Carnivorous Plant Society
A nationwide society that hosted the 2023 ICPS Conference in Himeji with the Kansai, Tokai, and Hiroshima groups.
Visit SiteSydney and Brisbane, Australia
Australasian Carnivorous Plant Society
Meets monthly in Sydney, with a Brisbane chapter.
Visit SiteVictoria, Australia
Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society
Running since 1983, with monthly meetings and a quarterly journal.
Visit SiteSouth Australia
Australian Carnivorous Plant Society
The South Australian society, active since the early 1980s.
Visit SitePeter D'Amato and The Savage Garden
If there is one person who shaped how a whole generation grows carnivorous plants, it is Peter D'Amato. He opened California Carnivores in 1989, helped start the Bay Area Carnivorous Plant Society, and wrote The Savage Garden, still the book I recommend first to anyone getting into these plants.
Peter was my hero. I first met him at California Carnivores on a family trip in 2003, and I have been grateful for him ever since. He passed away in 2024, but his nursery and his book are still out there doing what he loved most: getting people hooked on carnivorous plants.
Book
The Savage Garden, Revised: Cultivating Carnivorous Plants
Peter's classic guide, covering how to grow just about every carnivorous plant you will run into, with great photos and plain, practical advice. If you only own one carnivorous plant book, make it this one.
View on AmazonNursery
California Carnivores
The nursery Peter founded, still run today by a great crew who carry on his work. A fantastic place to find quality plants, and a big part of carnivorous plant history in the US.
Use code JEREMIAH at checkout for a discount.
Visit SiteAs an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Other Good Resources
These are the places I send people when they want to learn more. The ones marked Highly Recommended are my personal favorites.
Carnivorous Plant Hunter
The Ultimate Carnivorous Plant Nursery Guide
A free 62 page guide from James Haig Streeter on where to buy healthy, responsibly grown plants, which ones to start with, and why so many plants fail before they ever get a fair shot. Great for beginners, and still worth a read if you have been growing for years.
Get the GuideTom's Carnivores
Tropical Pitcher Plants: How to Care for Nepenthes
Tom Bennet's Nepenthes care guide is one of the best out there. It covers light, temperature, humidity, soil, watering, feeding, and growing from seed, all from someone who actually grows them. If you just picked up your first Nepenthes, read this.
Read the GuideFrançois Sockhom Mey
A Garden's Chronicle
François's blog is a deep dive into carnivorous plants, full of incredible photos and detailed writing. Set aside some time, because once you start reading it is hard to stop.
Visit BlogRedfern Natural History
Redfern Natural History Books
Some of the best carnivorous plant books ever made, including Drosera of the World, the Heliamphora volumes, and New Nepenthes. Many of their older titles are sold out and hard to find, so grab the ones you want while you can. They also have hundreds of free documentaries on YouTube.
Visit SiteICPS
Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Archive
Every back issue of the Carnivorous Plant Newsletter going back to 1972, free to read and searchable.
Visit SiteICPS
Registered Cultivar List
The official list of registered carnivorous plant cultivar names. The place to check whether a name is real.
Visit SiteBarry Rice
The Carnivorous Plant FAQ
My good friend Barry's site, one of the best places on the web for straight answers about carnivorous plants.
Visit Site