Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello everyone,

I appologize if this is an over asked question, but the Kingsnake forum search option is pretty week.

I am setting up a tropical vivarium with a small water area, all in a 10 gallon tank. Most everything is already constructed. There is a waterfall made from river stones, a center water feature lined with small aquarium gravel, and a large wood feature running from the right to the left of the tank, ending at the top of the waterfall. 70% of the back wall is covered with Cork. I have used dead 'moss,' bought in packages, to fill gaps in a variety of places in the tank.

Also, the tank is based on a small 1.5-2" false bottom, for the waterfall pump. The places where I will have plants I have lined with a small layer of ceramic pellets. I already have my plants. The only thing left to do is mix the substrate. Right now I have a 2-1 mixture of coco fiber (the bricked stuff) and tree fern fiber. Dead leaf compost is not something I have available in my area. What, if anything, do you recommend I add to the soil?

Your substrate sounds fine, although I prefer long brown sphagnum moss to the tree fern fiber, which if it is the same as I have used as an orchid media, is a bit too wiry and stiff. I do however, like the tree fern bark panels for drip walls. Also the cork bark stuffing-- "dead" moss in packages, if it is the died green stuff often used for hanging basket liner, isn't the best. Long, light brown sphagnum moss is better. (Canadian or New Zealand sphagnum, not the dark brown peat moss.) It will often come "alive" and has an antifungal quality that helps prevent stem rot on plants. It's also good for mixing in the substrate. A nice substrate combination I've found is a mixture of the cocoanut fiber with some organic compost or an organic "jungle mix" without fertilizers, Perlite or Vermiculite. You can usually find this in any plant nursery or larger outlet gardening section, such as Wall Mart, Lowes or Home Depot.

After doing several vivariums different ways, I finally tried "Great Stuff" a foaming, non-toxic insulator you can buy in spray cans for filling in behind the cork bark, and really like it. It comes in weird, rather unnatural colors, so you need to stick some cocoanut fiber on it for a more natural look, but you can punch holes in it to hold epiphytes, and it fills the spaces better than a moss stuffing.

These are just a few alternative suggestions and my own current personal preferences, but what you have already planned and done will probably work just fine for you. There are just so many ways to do it, that sometimes individual advice can get confusing.

Post some pictures for us.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
6 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
7 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
6 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
6 P. terribilis mint and organe
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus
2 D. azureus
4 P vittatus
2 P. lugubris

Thanks for the advice!

I think the reason I didn't use the spanghum moss had to do with how it is acquired. I heard somewhere that it is just taken careless from the environment. Maybe this isn't true though.

Actually, I used Great Stuff foam to adhere my cork panels to the back wall, and also to construct the waterfall housing.

I completed the vivarium today, and planted 4 of the 5 plants, and added some Java Moss from one of my established tanks. The Java Moss is to cover my wood feature. I am hoping the Club Moss will provide a sort of ground cover. Otherwise, I'll see if I can find a suitable moss. However, I've had bad experience with land mosses, and so have other people from what I have read. Usually they live for about 7 months, and then just start to die.

I'll post pictures soon.

BTW: This tank is intended for some Fire Bellied toads, but I am worried they will trample and kill everything. They aren't exactly considerate amphibians.

you dont have leaves in you area? you could put layer of sheet moss or live moss over it, thats what i usually do. other substrate options include: orchid bark, reptibark, peat, sand mixture (small ratio of sand), dead plants (any kind)...

I might add a layer of sheet moss actually.

I live in a desert, and the forest leaves just don't exist around here.
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www.mplionhearts.com

oh that makes sence, i was wondering where there is no leaves. you could set up a desert tank, you wouldn't have a problem finding stuff for that.

Except I'll be putting this baby FBT in there, along with his 2 brothers.

The image is at full resolution, sorry about that.

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www.mplionhearts.com

awsome pic! i've never seen FBT that small, they look a lot different than i thought they would. what kind of moss is that in the in the tank?

They don't get their distinctive orange coloring till much later (8-12 months I think).

The moss is just Java Moss growing on a piece of drift wood. That gives you an idea of the scale of this photo.

i didn't know that, cool! i can't seem to get moss to live. it usually pops up by the gravel, but nover on anything else. i'm jelous! sweet frog (and moss)!