Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Are the orchid barks you can buy at Home Depot or Lowes safe to use in a tank with dart frogs? Anyone know if they contain any toxic chemicals? Thanks.

Just check for chemicals, I think the bark is ok, but if you look on the peat packages most have chemicals added. I found some that did not, but had to go to a nursery to gte it.
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Kyle
www.kylesphotos.com
Dart Links - still a work in progress
1.2.0 D. leucomelas
1.1.0 D. azureus
1.0.1 D. imitators
0.0.2 D. ventrimaculatus

I've used orchid bark from home depot in my soil mixtures without problems. I think the brand name that they carry is Scott's but I'm not positive about that. The orchid bark seems to be a mix of fir bark, charcoal, gravel and vermiculite. A better option would be to just buy a bag of repti-bark or other reptile bark substrate. Most reptile bark substrates are fir bark (read the package to double check). There isn't really any need to add charcoal, gravel or vermiculite to a soil mix in a dart frog terrarium, plain fir bark will break the soil mixture up enough. Good luck,
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Devin
devin@amphibiancare.com
www.amphibiancare.com
4.1 Dendrobates tinctorius 'Dwarf French Guiana'
1.1 Dendrobates tinctorius 'Powder Blue'
5.1 Mantella aurantiaca
2.1 Mantella crocea
0.0.2 Mantella madagascariensis
1.0 Ceratophrys cranwelli
1.0 Bufo americanus
0.0.1 Salamandra salamandra
1.0 Ambystoma tigrinum
0.1 Chamaeleo calyptratus
0.1 Phelsuma dubia
1.0 Uroplatus ebenaui
0.0.1 Chrysemys picta belli
1.0 Terrapene carolina triunguis

Thanks. I was asking b/c Lowes had some on sale for $1 and I wanted to use some on my new tank. Couldn't pass it up.