Yvonne is correct. Grass is not the ideal.
HELP (home's hingeback tortoise) care
- Thread starter hingeback
- Start date
For example? The jungle is fenced up, but I guess I may be able to get some stuff out, but what should I get?Be careful, its a jungle out therelol
I think you maybe safer assuming you have quite a few predators in the area.
Make some of the enclosure grass, some like a forest floor, plant it out heavily for cover and have a safe place at night to lock your tort away.
Could you use anything from the jungle to put in your enclosure?
If I only use some grass, what substrate should I use? Is pearl grass safe? It is quite hard to find shade plants. I went to two nurseries today and I got some boston fern, but can't get hosta. I am testing out whether it could survive the direct sunlight. If the survive well then I'd get more.
Ok , I just googled both grasses you have mentioned. The problem is not because its safe or not, its because they don't offer any cover. With these grasses it would still be a wide open space, making your Tortoise feel insecure.
I can't tell from the photo, but it looks quite a nice large area for your Tortoise. Could you plant heavily in one part of the enclosure for now. Concentrate on a smaller area rather than have plants spread out offering no cover. Then build on that over time.
Can you go to the jungle at the back of your house and get some of the debris on the floor. Dried leaves, twigs etc.(if its safe for you to go there) Is there any old pieces of tree branches lying around you can use.
If I put my hingebacks on my grass in the garden, they just head for cover under bushes and trees.
Okay, I could try getting those debris. The whole right verticle stretch would be cool in the afternoon because it is shaded by the house. At the bottom part I am building a hide plus the hill-like landscape. And for the heavily planted side I could plant maybe carex, fescue grass?
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I just realized I have some photos on my phone of mine in the garden. 
Carex and fescue would be OK planted in small patches amongst other plants and left to grow high and dense.
Nice enclosure
Okay, so I would mainly be planting money plant and boston fern
Ok. Can you get some old logs or tree branches, some stones. Weeds to plant.
What I found is, forget making your enclosure nice and neat, they like walking under and over things, it needs to look natural and overgrown with cover.
I could get those branches and stones, but what weeds to plant?
I have dandilion and plantains. These grow quite big and add to the overall ground cover.
Dont forget you need to add worms(although you should get them naturally) to your enclosure. Also in my garden I have apples fallen from the tree, this attracts slugs and snails in abundance. Then I just collect them and throw them in the enclosure.
This is what @FLINTUS was saying.
If you have a mini ecosystem going with natural bugs,snails etc in there, you won't need to feed them every day. They will hunt for food themselves. This is also why you don't want grass for substrate, forest floor attracts natural bugs for your tortoise to eat.
If you can find old logs and bark this will attract pillbugs(woodlice) to live in. Your Tortoise will eat pillbugs.
It will be OK if you just have tufts of grass scattered around that are overgrown, but not a nice neat well cut lawn.
Wish I was there to help. It looks fun.
Ha ha, thanks .I have dandilion and plantains. These grow quite big and add to the overall ground cover.
Dont forget you need to add worms(although you should get them naturally) to your enclosure. Also in my garden I have apples fallen from the tree, this attracts slugs and snails in abundance. Then I just collect them and throw them in the enclosure.
This is what @FLINTUS was saying.
If you have a mini ecosystem going with natural bugs,snails etc in there, you won't need to feed them every day. They will hunt for food themselves. This is also why you don't want grass for substrate, forest floor attracts natural bugs for your tortoise to eat.
If you can find old logs and bark this will attract pillbugs(woodlice) to live in. Your Tortoise will eat pillbugs.
It will be OK if you just have tufts of grass scattered around that are overgrown, but not a nice neat well cut lawn.
Wish I was there to help. It looks fun.
In that case should I provide a food dish or just let it be? If there is no food dish, where should I put its lettuce? And should I cut the lettuce or just leave it raw? Should I just throw the snails in the food dish or just the enclosure?
You still need a food dish to put your greens and fruit in. But also put worms etc in the dish. I should cut it all up. But aside of that get some worms,slugs,snails and pillbugs and just put them in your enclosure, so they start living in there too.Ha ha, thanks .
I just toss whole mushrooms in the enclosure too aswell as in the food dish cut up.Ha ha, thanks .
I would seriously recommend some plants with large leaves-banana plants, ferns, rubber plants etc.
What other types of bigger ferns are safe?
I'm not sure on this, I would imagine there are a lot of ferns. You may be better listing what ferns you can get, then we can tag some members in to help you.
Can you get any banana trees, or swiss cheese plants for cover, maybe scatter a few small palms in there, hibiscus plants will add colour and some cover.
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