Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am making a crested gecko habitat, and I love all these different kinds of branches available online, but they are all so expensive. There is a willow tree my friend has that has some awesome looking branches and stuff. Could I take branches from this tree and simply soak them in water and then bake them? And leaves, I would like to cover the ground, but I don't know how I can get ones from outside clean. What do you guys do?
Thanks

Willow may not be the best choice for a humid enclosure but if you like it, then it's up to you I guess. The best way to "treat" it would be to let it sit in your oven set to 250 deg (cooking time varies due to elevation) for about 2 hours. That is for hard woods, I would go about 200 for 2 hours with a soft wood like willow. For the leaves, it depends on what you are doing with them. Are they going to be a primary substrate or just the covering to the main substrate? Are they willow leaves or hard wood leaves? This is important because soft wood leaves tend to get real mushy (that is a scientific term)and rot quickly in a humid cage. If your useing hard wood type leaves, crumple a handfull up and lay it down first, then add a few larger ones on top of those - this will create micro-habbitats and help in feeding any plants you may have planted... Just remember to add more in the fall. There isn't too much you can do with leaves to clean them, just make sure they are collected from an area free of pesticides and check them over for any bugs before adding them into the cage.

What happens to willow in a humid cage? I would think it would hold up well being that willow is from swampy areas usually.

The wood will start to rot. It may take a few years to break compleately down but within a year you will see mold growing from the areas that are exposed (with out bark). There are alot of good woods you can use, or if you don't mind changing out the branches you use every few months then you can use it. I don't know how your setting up your cage. In an area that will support willows you should be able to find oaks and maples. Those would be good for long term. Honestly, if you go with willow and change out the branches it could be good with you and the animals. It could keep you from getting bored...
-Blue

Hmmmm....This willow is quite tall and I don't want to have to keep getting the ladder out for more. I may just use bamboo or natural vines and liana. How should those stand up?

- For cresteds you can use bamboo and sturdy plants. If it's a large cage and your feeling froggy you can make your own super bamboo!
I use pvc pipe, hot glue bamboo colored out door paint and a bit of dark stain.
Here is how it works......
- take the PVC and cut it to length, you can cut it diagnaly at this point too...
- use your hot glue gun to make the "growth rings" found on bamboo.
- when the glue dries use the dark stain to paint the glue ring. When you've gone all the way around the ring stroke the brush up and down until you run out of extra paint from the ring.
- then paint a light coat of the bamboo colored paint on the PVC.
- let dry and BAM - you have a hard core peice of bamboo.
I got this idea from Martha Stewert - no kidding, it was used to cover a plastic table to make it look tropical...

- Blue