Reptile & Amphibian Forums

One of my cages is 4x4x2. I have a ficus on one side of the cage that has been struggling for several months. I recently switched to Capture the sun mercury vapor bulbs and I thought that the ficus would love the better light. Since then the ficus has gone down hill. Is it because I changed the bulb which did affect the temperature on that side of the cage? Or did it finally just die.

I just have no luck with plants, every hibiscus I buy has a death sentence. "Hmmm" Do we think that a Hibiscus would do better with the better lighting? It hasn't affected the Pothos and Umbrella tree.
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Thanks Dawn
1.1 Veiled (Kermit and Moe)
0.1 Helmeted Iguana (Louie)
0.1 Leopard Gecko (Velvet)
0.0.2 Toads

Are you over-watering? That can kill a plant just as fast as under-watering.
You need to water them often, but let them drain completely. If you don't let them drain, root-rot will get them.

I use the Miracle Grow drops when I water, and they have made a dramatic improvement. I have tons of new growth on my ficus.

I've found that ficus are a piece of cake. Just water them once a week and let them drain and that should be it. Hibiscus are harder to keep healthy, mainly because they like bright, direct sunlight. They really aren't a good low-light (cage light) plant.

What type of miracle grow drop do you use? Any particular kind, or just plain fertilizer drops?

I have heard sometimes of ficus bushes dying because of too much UVB, that might be it. Buy a new plant and replace the old one, then put the dying one next toa window or something, with a bit less light.

hope that works!

In my experience, Ficus & hibiscus never die as a result of over watering as long as they have adequate drainage AND enough light. If the plant is getting inadequate light, it won't take up much water and it can be over watered. But if it's gotr enough light it's pretty hard top kill a Ficus. The MV bulb isn't very good for usable light for the plant. All my cages sit in sunny windows and get artificial light as well. I'm guessing your cage is not in a sunny window. If it's not you either need to move it to such a spot or invest in a full spectrum fluorescent plant light in addition to your UVB light.

Too many people put their plants (and cages) in dark corners and then wonder why the plants die.
Ed

I've had the same ficus bejamina in my Jackson's cage for a year and a half, and I have to continually prune it because of new growth. It's very healthy.
The bottom isn't as full as the top area, though.

I water it about once a week, and make sure it never sits in standing water in the drain pan. I even put flat rocks between the drain pan and the pot, to allow for extra drain room. I also have an auto mister, and most of that water goes into the pot as well. I have three Reptisun 5.0 tubes and one 60 w ZooMed daylight bulb for a light source. The room is not bright, and not near any windows.

Sheflerra are a little more delicate, and I did have one die. But the one I got around a month ago has shown no signs of ill health, so hopefully it will stay healthy too. I heard that Shefleraa REALLY need to drain well.

I just use the plain old Miracle Grow house plant drops at every watering.

3 Reptison 5.0s and ne 60 watt full spetrum is a fair amount of light (but not as much as a sunny window) so I take your experience as supporting mine: i.e., that light is the critical factor, especially with poor drainage. These plants are fairly sensitive to wet feet in low light but rather tolerant of abuse when given lots of light. FWIW, I never fertilize mine, figuring that the cham feces and occasional dead prey items provide enough nutrients. Which reminds me, plants also burn easily from too much fertilizer if not growing rapidly (i.e., if they don't have enough light).
Ed

where could i get a fluorescent plantlight thats 4'

but here is a ?.

right now i have two 5.0 fluorescent bulbs that are 4' and i am using them to grow plants for a science project at my preschool with the kids, and all the plants sprouted about two weeks ago and are still growing. that is the only light they have. so wouldnt these lights be enough for my ficus in my cham cage without any problems.
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1.0. Vield Chameleon(Jessy James)
1.1.3 Sugar gliders(Bonnie & Clyde)
2.0 Ferrets(Butch & Sundance)
1.1.3 Parakeets(Prettyboy,Sassy)
1.0 Doberman (Aries)
1.1 Cats(Riley, Zoe)

You can get such lights at any hardware dtore, Home Depot, etc. Part of the problem might be the age of the bulbs. They start to lose effectiveness after 6-9 months. That's especially true of UVB bulbs but true of others as well. Another issue might be the foliage. These bulbs are only really effective when they're a few inches from the plant. For a Ficus, that means only the top leaves are getting enough light. The lower leaves are too far away from the light and even worse, they're shaded from the light by the upper leaves.
Ed

There are so many variables when it comes to growing plants and many factors to be considered. Climate, environment/season (example- heat v.s. air conditioning), light, water, humidity, fertilizer (more needed during growing season- spring and summer (brighter light will encourage faster growth which means more fert. is needed). I don't fert. during the winter as the light levels are lower which means minimal/no growth and no need for supplemental food. During winter they usually only maintain what foliage they have and may lose a few leaves due to lower light. (A plant will only keep as many leaves as it needs for photosynthesis to keep the plant alive). Comparison- in a temperate climate, if you buy a foliage plant at Lowe's, chances are it came from a grower in Florida, when you bring it home and put it in the house, it will go through an acclimation period (usually 2-3 weeks), losing lower leaves or if it is a full plant, it will shed the inner leaves as those won't get enough light. When a person gets a tan in the summer and loses it during the winter, the reason is there is not enough "light" to sustain the tan. I often use this comparison in my horticultural lectures. It sounds simple and it actually is. The basic rule of thumb to keeping plants alive is to understand how and when they grow and to adjust accordingly to the particular climate/season/environment. During the summer I keep a hibiscus in the chameleon cage and one outside in direct sun and rotate every couple of weeks. During the winter I keep one in the cage and one under grow lights in the basement and rotate. No reason for a costly grow light. A basic shop light using one cool bulb and one warm, this combination gives all of the rays that are needed to sustain healthy growth. I hope some of this will help.