Decorating

[Elijahsmom]

Alright guys I'm decorating Elijah's viv. I've looked at everyone's BEAUTIFUL viv's on the thread here, OMG, there are some amazing ones out there, props to you guys!!! :wink: Anyways, Elijah's tank is pretty bare, I've got some things on a wish list a LLLreptile that I'm saving up for but I've been shopping around town too. I've noticed that a lot of pet stores are starting to sell live plants for vivs. Any comments on this? They have cacti though I know they can get big, I don't care to get one with spikes (he could take an eye out) but something to add color. Is eating this a problem? Stay away from the flowering kind? Also, I was at Lowe's today and I found a clay flower pot for a couple of bucks and I had an idea! :shock: What if I turned it upside down and used the top for basking and cut a hole so he can get under it and hide or sleep, I could put his Mater blanket in there too. The only problem is how do I cut a hole without shattering the whole thing? It's even got that nifty drainage hole so I can stick my temp probe through that and keep the cord out of the way and tape it to the top of the pot. Now would the clay get too hot? His wood basking spot is at about 97 on cooler days to 103 of warmer ones. Thanks for the input!!! 8)

 

[Elijahsmom]

Any and all feedback is welcome!

 

[isdrake]

There is a lot of safe plats you can use. It helps with the humidity (if you need it) and looks WAY better than plastic ones, I hate those. I would love to help you with a list of plants but I have no idea what they are called in English and it's kind of late over here so I have no time to translate. But I think others can help you out.

Good luck.

 

[Elijahsmom]

Thanks isdrake, I think they have mini aloe plants for sale at the petstores as well as other cacti but I don't want anything with spikes. I know the plants will get bigger eventually but when they do that I can use them to decorate my viv (aka house :lol: )

 

[isdrake]

Here is a list of safe plants that survives both the climate and the dragon itself. I will only post them in Latin though but I don't think you should have any problems finding the English names for them.

Just be careful about the chemicals fertilizer that might be used on the plants. You should wait at least 12 weeks before putting them in the enclosure.


Agaves-species
Aspidistra elatior
Beaucarnea recurvata
Brachychiton rupestris
Cordyline fruticosa
Crassula arborescens and Crassula ovata
Dracaena-species
Ficus-species
Gasteria-species
Kalanchoe beharensis
Pachira macrocarpa
Pachypodium lamerei
Sanserveria trifsciata
Schefflera arobicola
Stephanotis floribunda
Yucca elephantipes
Zamia pumila
Zamioculcas zamifolia

 

[Elijahsmom]

Thanks for that, I'll google them and see what I get!

 

[remi1]

I have also used flowerpots upside down like you're describing. I didn't have any pbs with heat but I broke a ton of clay pots trying to get out a piece of the rim the way I wanted. Then one day I tried soaking it in water before trying to take out chunks of it. It worked pretty well, it didn't get all those cracks in it. You still have to use care and go slowly, though, taking out little chunks at a time. Good luck!!

 

[Chaucer498]

Isn't this plant "Zamia pumila" poisonous?

 

[Elijahsmom]

I'm not sure about the plant, I haven't searched many of them. I did pop that Latin name that was in the last post in google and it looks almost like a palm tree, I'm looking for more desert type of plants anyways.
Thanks for the flower pot idea, I will defiantly try soaking it in water, what did you use to chip away at it? I don't want any sharp edges that Elijah could cut himself on.
Thanks again guys.

 

[Elijahsmom]

So I've run into a few problems in decorating Elijah's cage. First of all I've had to decrease my heat light to a 50watt halogen bulb, the temps even with the 75watt were getting to high. Elijah still has some stress marks and it's concerning to me. I've had to move his basking spot farther down in the tank to keep it from over heating, if it sits up higher he won't bask. I had bought a ceramic basking plank from petsmart today thinking that it would be a nice place for him since the ceramic would heat up a little bit as well, I positioned my thermometer probe there and put the 50watt bulb on and an hour later the temp read 135.4!!!! :shock: I took out the ceramic thing and placed the probe on the ground under the light and the temp dropped to 101.3 I didn't want his basking spot to be so far away from the light because I know he needs to get UVB while he basks too. He has a hammock near his UVB that places him about 7" from it but he can't bask in it too. Any advice? I've had nothing but problems since I bought the new cage... :?:

 

[Elijahsmom]

The UVB bulb and the basking bulb are near each other but Elijah's basking spot is low to the ground, here is a pic:

The large log to the right is where the heat is.
Thanks again, you guys always help me in a pinch!

 

[Elijahsmom]

Any and all comments are welcome about my setup. Thanks guys!

 

[Elijahsmom]

bump?

 

[remi1]

Yeah, getting the lighting all figured out is the trickiest part. Try decreasing the wattage of the basking bulb. I don't know what you're using for a basking bulb, but a regular old household bulb works fine, as long as it's not an energy efficient one.

I wouldn't worry about the stress marks. Any time you change things around he'll get all stressed. Give him a week to get adjusted and I bet he'll be fine.

Looking good!

 

[remi1]

I'm not sure about the plant, I haven't searched many of them. I did pop that Latin name that was in the last post in google and it looks almost like a palm tree, I'm looking for more desert type of plants anyways.
Thanks for the flower pot idea, I will defiantly try soaking it in water, what did you use to chip away at it? I don't want any sharp edges that Elijah could cut himself on.
Thanks again guys.

Haha, sorry, didn't see this. I used the part of the hammer that you use to take nails out. I'd wedge the edge of the flower pot in there and pull. Worked ok. I'm sure there's a better method out there, though. I also used it to get rid of the sharp edges.