Reptile & Amphibian Forums

im wondering what can be used to fertilize plants in a vivarium.i have some plants that im sure are going to need to be fertilized at some point,but i also have quite a bit of live moss(3 species)and a venus flytrap,and im told that you should not use fertilizer on moss and carnivorus plants.im told that products like miracle grow boost the soil ph through the roof and moss and flytraps cant handle high ph.maybe there is a very mild, fertilizer i can add to my water mistings that wouldnt hurt,or something totally organic? now keep in mind i have almost my entire floor covered in moss,even moss goes around the base of my other plants.i cant add anything directly to the soil without disrupting and destroying much of my setup.thats why id like something that can be added to water.
a second question is in regards to venus flytaps and such.has anyone here kept them,i just added one and im curious if it will survive.if it does id like to add a pitcher plant as well.i dont keep frogs so i dont have to worry about a froglet getting eaten lol.im curious about my flytrap because its weird looking.typical flytraps are red inside the mouth but mine are all green,even the heads and where the teeth usually point in,on these the teeth point out.im thinking maybe the heads are still immature and will turn red as the get older and then the teeth will point in when they are able to eat.just wondering if anyone knows what im talking about with these.thanks.

Venus fly traps--While there is only one specie from S. Carolina, Dionaea muscipula, there are many varietal forms with differing red colorations and varying sizes and shapes of the traps. They require some sunlight or rather intense lighting, ventilation, plus very good drainage. Brown shagnum moss with some perlite added can provide this. They also need a cold winter dormancy in order to survive. Some people remove them and put them in the vegetable cooler of the refrigerator for about 6 weeks during the winter. They don't require fertilizer of any sort. In my experience, they don't make very good tropical vivarium subjects.

Some of the pitcher plants such as Nepenthes are more tropical and adaptable. I know of at least one pitcher plant lover who has them in his dart frog tanks with no problem. The thumbnails have been known to deposit tadpoles in them, just like a bromeliad funnel. (Don't ask me why they don't get digested, but there must be some mechanism that prevents this.)

As far as fertilizers, your original organic compost should provide all you need for a very long time. Unless you are growing orchids, which are heavy feeders, most tropical vines and plants are not. If this doesn't work for you, perhaps one of the seaweed fertilizers, diluted more than recommended for houseplants might work. This is a little stinky, however. I don't know if you can still get blood meal, but I used it years ago in our "organic" vegetable and bedding plant nursery. It might release too much nitrogen for a tropical terrarium--I'm not sure. In my dart tanks, I do more trimming back of enthusiastic growth than worrying about enhancing growth. Of course in a frog tank, there are always some nutrients recycled from frog poop.

I kept a totally enclosed and sealed plant terrarium once without renewing water, fertilizing or opening it for 3 years. I finally took it apart when the sphagnum moss, which had "come alive" was overgrowing the sides. It was an interesting experiment in self sustaining small terrariums and observing the biological recycling.
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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
2 D. azureus
4 P vittatus

>>im wondering what can be used to fertilize plants in a vivarium.i have some plants that im sure are going to need to be fertilized at some point,but i also have quite a bit of live moss(3 species)and a venus flytrap,and im told that you should not use fertilizer on moss and carnivorus plants.im told that products like miracle grow boost the soil ph through the roof and moss and flytraps cant handle high ph.maybe there is a very mild, fertilizer i can add to my water mistings that wouldnt hurt,or something totally organic? now keep in mind i have almost my entire floor covered in moss,even moss goes around the base of my other plants.i cant add anything directly to the soil without disrupting and destroying much of my setup.thats why id like something that can be added to water.
>> a second question is in regards to venus flytaps and such.has anyone here kept them,i just added one and im curious if it will survive.if it does id like to add a pitcher plant as well.i dont keep frogs so i dont have to worry about a froglet getting eaten lol.im curious about my flytrap because its weird looking.typical flytraps are red inside the mouth but mine are all green,even the heads and where the teeth usually point in,on these the teeth point out.im thinking maybe the heads are still immature and will turn red as the get older and then the teeth will point in when they are able to eat.just wondering if anyone knows what im talking about with these.thanks.

Hi eyes, I see you over at the gtp forum, i believe this tank you are setting up is for it, correct?
First, I'd like to commend you on your endeavor to provide your gtp a very exotic, home like enviroment. Unfortunately, you may be setting yourself up for some trouble. From the point of the snake, you are creating potential health problems due to the various micro-organisms that are present and will be present once this tank establishs its self. I speak of molds, fungi, various bacterias and viruses. From the point of the tank a gtp will disrupt much of your plantings due to the amount of space available to the snake. In the wild a group of plants in a gtps territory will not be tread upon nearly as often as a small tank. This will only get worse as the snake increases in size. Then there is the defication issues, in the "wild" a small plant will benifit from this as the various bacterias break the matter down and the rain fall brings the nutrients to the roots. In the territory of a gtp it probably never deficates in the same area twice. In a artifical enclosure with limited space this will be a problem as the bacterias and various micro- organisms are not present to take care of the waste matter and even if they were they would not be able to keep up with the amount of waste being produced. This in turn will affect the plants, eventually killing them. This is why most of our mini enviroments/eco systems only include the smallest of reptiles/amphibians. Do yourself, your ego-system and your beloved GTP a favor, set the gtp up in a more stable enviroment. Keep the tank as it is or get some darts in there.
As too your questions there are natural, organic fertilizers available. or you can make your own by filling a old pantyhose with frech compost and soaking it overnite in a bucket of water. The nutirnts will leach from the compost and suspend in the water.Once the water has turned a tea like color you are ready to go. The venus flytrap may not be recieving enough light, and has paled as a persons skin does in the abscence of a tan.
I hope this post has not upset you, as i was just trying to save you some headaches and let downs. Goodluck with all, Clint
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0.1 Colombian Boa-(Boa Constrictor Imperator) "Honey"
1.0 Hogg Isle Boa-(Boa Constrictor Imperator) "Peeker"
1.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa-(Epicrates Cenchria) "Houdini"
1.1 Argentine Boa-(Boa Constrictor Occidentalis) "Lacie" & "Oreo"
0.0.2 Green Tree Python-(Morelia Viridis)Biak type-"Smog" & Sorong type- "un-named"
2.0 Canines Husky-Cody & Husky/Shepard-Trail
0.1 Wife-Michele
2.0 Kids-Chris & Bodhi(New born 9/14/05)