Usually, when we think of "carnivorous," animals come to our mind. Yet there are some wonderfully fascinating plants that eat animals. It seems a contradiction, but this meat eating habit of some plants is an interesting and normal adaptation of nature. Carnivorous plants have evolved in places where the soil is poor and low in nutrients. Here, animals can provide them missing ingredients needed for survival. The carnivorous plants have fascinating methods of luring, trapping and digesting animals which provide an adequate supply of necessary nutrients. Green plants require sunlight for photosynthesis. Some selected carnivorous plants like venus flytrap, flypaper and pitfall, trap plants to use as catch crops or emergency crops, smother crops, trap crops, replacement inter crops and avenue crops which had naturally habit evolved to eat the insects. This habit can be used in agriculture, mainly for pest control (especially in sucking pest especially when they are more resistant to pesticides), weed management and nutrient management etc. These management strategies are mainly maintained through inorganic ways, as pesticides, weedicides and fertilizers are being discouraged by researchers as well as farmers. Carnivorous plants thus may occupy important place in future agriculture. This paper presents some of such ideas of better use of nature to maintain sustainable ecology/environment.
Carnivorous plants, pest control, nutrient management, agriculture field
