Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Im doing my first rock bottom substrate and i was wondering what type of substrate should i put on top of it? I already have screen on top of the rocks and i was thinking of sphagnum moss or orchid bark and eco-earth to use but i dont know, any suggestions?

I use eco-earth and orchid mix. 50/50. Works good. I will usually put leaf litter on top of that to keep the frogs from getting muddy. I'm going to try using new zealand sphagnum moss as I just heard it will start to grow in your tank!
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Josh Willard
www.joshsfrogs.com

I've used a lot of different things, but am currently using an organic compost bought in bulk from a nursery. I cover it with small aquarium pebbles and lace it with Java moss, then let this grow awhile before introducing the frogs. Pastor Josh's solutions are also good. Most anything that doesn't contain fertilizers is all right. A layer of leaf litter, especially oak leaves seems to help. I had a few months of advocating cocoanut fiber, and while it works, I'm having second thoughts about it that I haven't figured out yet.

The Australian sphagnum no longer comes alive. It used to, but I suspect that import regulations now demand that it is "sterilized." I've had a lot of experience with this dating back to the 1950's. I used to use milled sphagnum mixed with sand to grow difficult seeds, such as rare cacti. It had a sort of antibiotic quality that prevented damping off and rot. In terrariums, it would indeed come alive, but eventually over-grow the entire set-up. I still use it, and it is useful, but it no longer "comes alive"-- The green stuff people may see on it is merely algae, now. It is still however, worth using, because it is a nice substrate, especially for stuffing behind cork bark for bromeliads to hold on to. I'm sorry I have no exact information about what occurred regarding the changes in the properties of the sphagnum, but am merely guessing.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
5 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
5 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
4 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
4 P. terribilis
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus

the LFS from New Zealand does come back to life. i have extensive experiance with this stuff from growing carnivorous plants over the last few years. it is most definatly sphagnum thats growing. personally i prefer the looks of the North American species a also have.

In two of my tanks the New Zealand has come back to life. It is'nt just algae growing over it, Its bright green and growing on some cork bark and the side of my tank. It seems to be slow growing though.
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Bryan Dimas
Stockton, CA

1.1.4 Leucomelas
0.1 Cobalt Tincs
0.0.1 Mint Terrabillis

I have some short slow-growing moss on my cork bark, too. I didn't associate it with the sphagnum, though. I thought it was perhaps spores that germinated on the cork because I don't sterilize the cork bark, only wash it off.

Where did you get your sphagnum? I bought mine in bulk a year ago and can't remember where I found it, but it was somewhere on the internet, not from a nursery.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
5 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
5 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
4 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
4 P. terribilis
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus

I think I got it at Frogday from Reptile Depot. It's really nice looking, I wish it was faster growing so that it would cover the glass. My 50 hex has been set up for 2yrs and the is only a three in area of it that has grown.
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Bryan Dimas
Stockton, CA

1.1.4 Leucomelas
0.1 Cobalt Tincs
0.0.1 Mint Terrabillis

Thats what I use. 2 parts eco-earth 1 part milled spagnum moss and 1 part orchid bark(I like the small cut over the larger cut)
Also I find it best to either grow live moss or place a layer of spagnum over the top. For two reasons. 1: eco-earth will stick to your frogs and make them all muddy. Not that it hurts them, it just makes them look ugly. 2: eco-earth has a tendancy to suck humidity out of the air and dry out the tank. The moss helps keep the humidity up.