by the way, someone asked me how i did it a while ago, and this is the response i gave him, i know you probably don't care, but i like to talk about my viv so here's my response from a few weeks ago.



"the pond area is just tow slabs of glass siliconed in at an angle to make it more realistic. I then covered the whole water area with black slate by siliconing the slate to the glass. the bottom of the pool is just a bunch of black slate i didn't silicone that down for easy cleaning. There is a simple fountain pump in the pond that goes up the back and spills onto my driftwood background to make a water fall. (see my gallery in the photos section) the background is expanding foam and cypress driftwood(so it doesn't rot) covered in black silicone and coco bark. the land areas are a little trickier. the passion vines are actually in unglazed terra-cotta pots submersed deep in the rest of the substrate. the rest of the substrate is cocobark cuz it doesn't mold. inside the submerged pots there is regular(unfertalized, just to be safe)(this is what the orchid mix arrow is refering to in my picture) potting soil.(do not use potting soil for the whole substrate or it will mold) this is covered in tropical moss(no other kind any other kind will die off in these conditions.) the moss prevents burrowing to protect the snake from any potential mold in the submersed flower pots. there is also a turtle filter outside the tank, with tubes running to the pool. below the substrate there is a drainage layer made of hydoton, this allows the water to leach toxins out of the soil(the water has to siphoned out) and it keeps the plant roots from rotting. I made kajika a hide hut out of black slate to match the pool (i siliconed it together, cuz i was afraid of the rocks shifting and smashing her). and the vines are wired to the background and the top. The lights are grow lights, and I think that's it. I suggest going to blackjungle.com they will give you a step by step on how to make the background"
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-Jasmine



1.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boas

(Mercutio and Kajika)

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