Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i was in homedepot the other day and i bought an ornimental pepper plant in the houseplant section.i read the care card and did some reading online about them and they originate in tropical south america and the care is like any other tropical house plant.its a really cool looking plant that grows small purple peppers.im wondering if you guys could think of any reason i shouldnt have introduced it to my vivarium.i thought mine needed some color and its a really cool looking tropical.also,id like some more color,besides my brom,can anyone reccomend another hardy tropical flower?thanks

Try the pepper plant and let us know how they do. I did not know they were from south america.

Orchids will flower in tanks, but you got to have the right ones.

I know you can grow begonias, but not sure if they will flower or not.
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Josh Willard
www.joshsfrogs.com

Ornimental peppers will probably survive in a vivarium for awhile, but just straggle around, not bloom or produce peppers. They require full sun and are they are from from sections of Mexico and South America that are drier, not rain forests. They do better with lower humidity--more of a desert environment. They are a much better window plant in a pot than in an enclosed vivarium with limited light. They are also annuals, so last only one season or a bit more on a window sill. They have the same requirements as our garden peppers such as the bells and hot peppers. They are actually a more decorative off-shoot of the spicey hot "chile tepines."
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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

yea i thought that pepper plants came from the drier desert parts of south america also,but it apears i was wrong.they tend to grow them there a lot because the lack of water produces very hot and spicey peppers but they originated in the tropics.anyway,this little guy has already begun producing purple fruit before i introduced him into the vivarium so ill keep you updated.hey listen,i was at the store the other day and they had a tropical cactus,i think it was called christmas cactus.they say it comes from the rainforest and grows it trees like orchids.it has amazing flowers and id love to add it as well but never heard of anyone using it in vivariums.what do you guys think? it has no spines and looks like a harmless succulent thats habbits suggest it would do great and look amazing.anyone try this or any other jungle succulents.?

The Zigocactus and Schlumgergera (Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas cacti one finds seasonally) get pretty large for a vivarium, but some of the Hatiora and Rhipsalis do make interesting epiphytes, especially those that are not spiny and have recessed areoles, which makes them somewhat safer with frogs. R. paraxoxa is especially fascinating. Most have rather small flowers, but these are followed by red, white or purple fruit. I have the following in some of my vivariums: R. mesembryanthemoides, quellebabensis, hispata, rhomberia, houlletiana, rhombea, schaferii, capilliformis, warmingiana and clavata. There is a specialist in epiphytic cacti on the net that you can find by searching under Rhipsalis. I'll post the site later if I can find it again myself, since I've lost the address. I've found that they don't bloom in the vivs for me, probably needing much stronger light than I provide, but they are interesting additions, none the less, and don't seem to etiolate(scraggle and put out pale, long weak growth) under relatively low light. The photos are of newly potted cuttings of 3 of the species.

One of the cautions about using any cacti is that although some are virtually spineless, they all still have bristles in the areoles or "pores," that can be very irritating. If you've ever been tempted to "pet" the spineless bunny ears Opuntia microdasys, that's an extreme example.

Let us know how the pepper plant fares over time.

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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

I found my original source of the Rhipsalis I have:
Bob Smoleys

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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