What does your substrate consist of?

[Combat Advantage]

Ps, if you have moisture tolerant varieties, I'd go with anything you like plantwise, that doesn't require much light.

I've had successful amphibian terrariums with many moss varieties. Whatever you decide, I'd just keep it quarantined in a different room a couple of weeks and keep checking for mites that might cause issues.
Moss looks better than anything else I know of and is a soft carpet that they might like.

 

[Combat Advantage]

Pps: Just remembered that a store bought/ nursery plant will likely be dusted with an insecticide, so big warning on those.
I can't speak to soil other than commercial bags of top soil can be likewise toxic. Lots of gardeners have been losing plants to the chemicals in bagged soil in recent years .
I lost several treasured ones. An heirloom potted fig tree from multigenerational stock of southern italy......also lost my late dads citrus plant that survived in the same container for decades. That was supposed to be excellent potting soil. When I get more plants for container gardens next spring, ill go organic.

 

[Jeremy-psychonaut]

Pps: Just remembered that a store bought/ nursery plant will likely be dusted with an insecticide, so big warning on those.
I can't speak to soil other than commercial bags of top soil can be likewise toxic. Lots of gardeners have been losing plants to the chemicals in bagged soil in recent years .
I lost several treasured ones. An heirloom potted fig tree from multigenerational stock of southern italy......also lost my late dads citrus plant that survived in the same container for decades. That was supposed to be excellent potting soil. When I get more plants for container gardens next spring, ill go organic.

I was going to order the plants from an organic farm or a company that specializes in plants for bio active enclosures
Bad soil is a big concern of mine I’ve herd horror stories

 

[Combat Advantage]

Jeremy,

We've learned that big agriculture companies and even many smaller family ranches use pesticides and herbicides like water. It makes our foods toxic and the soils.
When companies bag soil for sales at the garden centers, it's getting far more common to find contaminated dirt. I'm starting to get into mulching as a solution. Right now, I plan to set up a couple raised beds for next spring. The compost and mulch should turn to good soil by the end of winter. That's more work than necessary for terrariums, but this subject is a good thing to learn from one another. It's like a lot of small nitch hobbies. Experiment and learn.

 

[Jeremy-psychonaut]

Jeremy,

We've learned that big agriculture companies and even many smaller family ranches use pesticides and herbicides like water. It makes our foods toxic and the soils.
When companies bag soil for sales at the garden centers, it's getting far more common to find contaminated dirt. I'm starting to get into mulching as a solution. Right now, I plan to set up a couple raised beds for next spring. The compost and mulch should turn to good soil by the end of winter. That's more work than necessary for terrariums, but this subject is a good thing to learn from one another. It's like a lot of small nitch hobbies. Experiment and learn.

It might be a lot of work but the end result is so worth it I think. I use to compost at my old place but I don’t have any spot for it where I live now
I lived on a small farm most of my life I miss it

 

[Combat Advantage]

That's awesome!
Nothing better than living on a farm and growing your own. I see why you take special interest in your Ts and are going out of your way to give them the best.

 

[Jeremy-psychonaut]

That's awesome!
Nothing better than living on a farm and growing your own. I see why you take special interest in your Ts and are going out of your way to give them the best.

Thank you

 

[liquidfluidity]

Ps, if you have moisture tolerant varieties, I'd go with anything you like plantwise, that doesn't require much light.

I've had successful amphibian terrariums with many moss varieties. Whatever you decide, I'd just keep it quarantined in a different room a couple of weeks and keep checking for mites that might cause issues.
Moss looks better than anything else I know of and is a soft carpet that they might like.

Very interested in mosses myself. Just no clue on maintaining or how to even get it going.

 

[liquidfluidity]

I usually do my own mixes using Reptisoil, chopped sphagnum, peat, and maybe a little sand, and cocoa fiber

 

[menavodi]

I use all these plants with organic soil. They are doing very good and my spiders as well. My terrariums do have lights.

 

[Combat Advantage]

Very interested in mosses myself. Just no clue on maintaining or how to even get it going.

Right now, I just have b. smithis so, they like it dry. The living moss won't work, but dry might be good. I'd have to set up multiple substrates, like on each side to see where they prefer. I've found the one likes outdoor green carpet and the other vermiculite. YMMV.
The moss I'm talking about is living rather than the bagged dry mosses. The way I set up terrariums before was a result of collecting native varieties from Md, Pa and Wva. When I went backpacking, I'd take big Ziploc bags and a rubber maid container. Id collect mosses and frogs. I made sure to take a little soil with the moss so it would transfer without shock. I just used loamy soil over a good thick pea gravel base for drainage. Moss with native soil that came with it on top. Must have good ventilation. A hygrometer, accurate one would be beneficial for optimum humidity for the sp. Just about all of them did very well. With amphibians, they like it moist and burrow if it gets too dry. The mosses were very tolerant and hardy. They were some of the best looking terrariums that I ever set up. Shades of green, blue, textures, life. The first impression that would come to mind when looking at it each day is "I'm one happy camper and so are my little friends.".

Since I haven't tried it with Ts, it would be experimental. Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe I'll do it next spring when I go backpacking again. I've been wanting to set up a jumping spider habitat and maybe collect tree frogs and do a separate 55 gal habitat. The live plants complicate things at first, but also compliment them. I would start with something native or not real expensive until it's proven successful.

Hope this helps.

C.A.

 

[Combat Advantage]

I use all these plants with organic soil. They are doing very good and my spiders as well. My terrariums do have lights.
View attachment 50297

Those look great!
I was thinking small ferns and low light vines since they are hardy and good looking.
Do you use fluorescent grow bulbs?

 

[liquidfluidity]

I'd love to do one for a T that consisted of a mossy substrate with it growing up into the furnishings, driftwood, etc. I wonder if I could do some type of hardy moss with C. Lividum. They are a fossorial species and like to burrow and like the substrate moist.

Trying to design a bedroom show piece in my head.....getting a headache, LoL

 

[menavodi]

Those look great!
I was thinking small ferns and low light vines since they are hardy and good looking.
Do you use fluorescent grow bulbs?

No, I used normal energy savers. Since some weeks I have LED lights now. Both setups work very well. Plants grow fantastic. I have my lights on for 12 hours.

 

[Combat Advantage]

I'd love to do one for a T that consisted of a mossy substrate with it growing up into the furnishings, driftwood, etc. I wonder if I could do some type of hardy moss with C. Lividum. They are a fossorial species and like to burrow and like the substrate moist.

Trying to design a bedroom show piece in my head.....getting a headache, LoL

I can't speak to your Lividum since I haven't raised one, but here's an idea. When I try a new substrate, or hide, I like to add it to one side of their house. By doing this, in my reasoning, I'm trying to reduce the stress of any more environmental changes than I have to. Then they are given a couple of weeks to adjust and get used to it. They might web it up, move it, avoid it, go off feed, .... That's how I judge and try to pick up on their communication. Even people don't like someone messing with their room without permission. I think most critters big and small are like that too. I'm reminded of that, because one of my neighbors just flipped over my raised bed that I started for next spring, while I was gone.

 

[Jeremy-psychonaut]

I can't speak to your Lividum since I haven't raised one, but here's an idea. When I try a new substrate, or hide, I like to add it to one side of their house. By doing this, in my reasoning, I'm trying to reduce the stress of any more environmental changes than I have to. Then they are given a couple of weeks to adjust and get used to it. They might web it up, move it, avoid it, go off feed, .... That's how I judge and try to pick up on their communication. Even people don't like someone messing with their room without permission. I think most critters big and small are like that too. I'm reminded of that, because one of my neighbors just flipped over my raised bed that I started for next spring, while I was gone.

That’s a great idea makes perfect sense

 

[Combat Advantage]

That’s a great idea makes perfect sense

Trial and error taught me this when working with big toothy animals. You know from working on a farm that livestock will talk to you in their own subtle language. I always enjoyed that. When I was a boy, there was a movie called Dr. Doolittle about a vet who communicated with the animals. Even though that was over the top, its really interesting to try to walk in their shoes, even if there's 8 of them.

 

[Combat Advantage]

Here's a link to a free movie stream.
Caution, I didn't use it in a Microsoft based computer, only my android phone system which is fairly safe. It works ok on stream #1 for me. Some of the movies on the other share streams were corrupted, so again be careful not to accidentally hit the wrong link or you might end up with a porn site. The big button in the middle of the screen worked.
It's a movie called Temple Grandin, on 123movies.

Watch Temple Grandin Full Movie Free | 123Movies

Biopic of Temple Grandin an autistic woman who overcame the limitations imposed on her by her condition to become a PhD and expert in the field of animal husbandry She developed an interest in cattle early in life while spending time at her Aunt and Uncles ranch She did not speak until age four...

www8.123movies.as

Its a true story based on a biography of a high functioning autistic lady who found her gift, talent and purpose in life was in the....ooops! I almost gave away the spoiler.
It's the best example I can think of about this topic. It's probably a chick flick, but it will appeal to farmers, and any of us who might have been vaccine injured.

 

[liquidfluidity]

Using repti/creature soil mixed with coco fiber and sphagnum. Seems to be working well. Tried a topsoil mix but had some mold issues.

 

[Combat Advantage]

Using repti/creature soil mixed with coco fiber and sphagnum. Seems to be working well. Tried a topsoil mix but had some mold issues.

Good to know about that combination.
Do you use any UV light? I'm wondering if that might be a key to killing the mold spores ? It looks/ sounds like you and menavodi must be doing something right.

I use all these plants with organic soil. They are doing very good and my spiders as well. My terrariums do have lights.
View attachment 50297