Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i would like to know issues people may have had that may determine why they may or may not use pots ( or planting their plants directly)
i'm currently setting up new enclosures and definately want to work towards natural plants rather than fake ones.
thanks for any advice/pointers.

i like using live plants, its pretty much all i've ever used. well, first of all i use peat moss as substrate. never had a problem with it, although it can mold if the conditions arent right. when i use plants i usually get stuff from lowes or home depot, either the small plants like vines (pothos, philodendron) which usually go for about $3 a piece, or a ficus when you want taller foliage, which usually starts around $7 for a decently bushy, but short one. almost all of my satanics have shown strong preference for ficus. i actually give all my plants a real good washing when i get them because often you find buildup on the leaves you get from these places. i also change out the soil, brushing off as much as possible then transplanting into the peat moss. you never know if the stuff is jacked up with fertilizers or whatnot. peat moss seems to hold most plants well, but unfortunately i have trouble with keeping bromeliads, which i hate because one of my satanics has used it as a spot to lay her eggs. it holds water well and maintains pretty good humidity, you can even cover the top of the peat moss with moss fiber, and it makes it even that much more attractive and i think helps hold the humidity even more. pothos is nice because it fills up the tank and drapes itself over anything, and can tolerate a wide range of light intensity.
right now im setting up my first rubbermaid tank. i cut a big rectangle out of the top and a thin rectangle out of the front, and glued in screens in for a light entrance and air circulation. it's just a real cheap and effective thing to do, i didnt have to go out to buy anything to make it. this tank is going to be less for viewing and more for breeding.

i just plain have a real strong preference for live planted setups. they're just more dynamic than fake plants and give that natural feel. they're really not that hard to maintain either.

Just like umop_apisdn i also only use live plants in my uros tanks, I use Pothos and different bromeliads and som orchids in my smaller uro species tanks, In my bigger tanks i´ve used big pothos plants and picus. I can recommend Ficus benedicta for lineatus, they love the leaves and always use them as sleeping spots during the day.

Good luck

Michael Jonasson
Sweden

I just finished planting this one thursday. Most of the plants I used were already mentioned by umop and Mickej. I found some cool moss out hiking and decided to plant that as well. I did this with my sikorae viv and it looks cool and helps hold humidity.

I'm with umop as far as buying plants. Home garden stores are much cheaper for houseplants than the local nursery.

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ryan
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Uroplatus sikorae

that moss looks great, you'll have to let us know how that works out/holds up. cage looks wonderful.

thanks!
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ryan
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Uroplatus sikorae

...i´ve would like to see some more climbing space, why not add som corkbark branches? Your sikoares would love them, the rough texture of branches really give sik´s an added feel of security rather than sitting on the glass.

Otherwise a great looking cage.

Michael Jonasson
Sweden

Thanks for the compliments. I haven't added anything to climb on yet. Just the plants. I will let them establish then add cork bark, bamboo, etc. I will post another pic when I add them, and when the waterfall is turned on. Thanks Ben for your suggestions on the waterfall.
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ryan
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Uroplatus sikorae

Sorry, i didnt mean to be disrespecting you or anything, just wanted to help. Hope there´s no hard feelings.

//Mickej

Nope not at all.

Do you use a combo of coco fiber and bamboo on the back of your enclosure? Do you have a pick of it? I would like to put some lineatus into the new tank as the sikorae seem very happy where they are. I would like to see a pick of you lineatus enclosure if you have one.
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ryan
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Uroplatus sikorae

if you can wait a few days for the picture i will be able to snap a pic for you. I have a tank that is 1500(high)x700x700mm that i use for my Lineatus. I have it decorated with a lot of smooth branches and a big "Ficus benedicta". I have corkbarkbakcground on two sides and two sides free.

Here is a pic of one of my Lineatus male, he i just about to shed and thats why he´s a bit pale.

You can E-mail me and i will send you some pics of my lineatus tank when i have taken them.

Michael Jonasson
Sweden

i dunno about the corkbark....my sikoraes almost never touched the corkbark slab i gave em, so i just took it out the other night to give extra room instead. i think the mossies would look and do better on mossy and lichen-covered branches.

The corkbark backgrounds i use in my terraria i almost copletly smooth, i just prefer to use corkbark branches for sikoares becuase i´ve noticed them using those more than the smooth branches i use. I´ve also red about it in Sascha Svateks book "Leaf-tailed geckos: The Genus Uroplatus" That is were i picked up the thing about the added feel of security for sikoare with the course bark. The book says i has something to do with the longer fringes the sikoares have along their bottom yaw, and the course bark makes them disappear better.

I can agree with you about the lichencovered braches. But really mossy ones, i dont the they really use those sort of branches as resting och sleeping places in the wild.

/Michael Jonasson
Sweden

....

Thanks a lot too..I was just wondering the same information.
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