Indoor plants.

[ForPhilbert]

Since I've built my new indoor tortoise enclosure, I would like to add some plants in there to make it feel more like a natural environment. What are some good plants to grow in an indoor enclosure that would be healthy for my Russian Tort Philbert? Thanks for the help!

 

[Yvonne G]

You might have better luck with artificial plants. Its pretty hard to grow plants in an indoor tortoise habitat.

You could try plants like Jade (crassula), Kalanchoe, any of the soft-bodied succulent plants. You can buy them in pretty small pots to fit in your habitat. The tortoise will eat them, and most of the succulents (excluding any in the Euphorbia family) are edible.

 

[chairman]

Sadly, many of the low-light plants that thrive indoors are not "safe" for tortoises. For any of the other plants, I have heard that you really need some "special" lighting for the plants. If I remember correctly, you want to go with a metal halide bulb because they emit the most blue light, which is the light that green plants process best. On the positive side, metal halide bulbs are cheap and you can install them high enough off the table that they won't change your temps (unless you want them to). If you do plant, remember that the plants will need a drainage layer for their roots.

I too have always had better luck with artificial plants. The dollar store has a pretty decent selection.

 

[moswen]

i've had an asparagus fern in my baby sulcata enclosure almost since i've had them, and it's the only thing that's withstood the test of the sulcata challenge. i do have little shallow trays that i routinely sprinkle seeds on, like mustard and turnip greens, i stick some pumpkin seeds in there too, but they all get eaten once they leaf. grass doesn't get eaten though! it's just not very pretty and plant like.

growing them in your enclosure is no problem, if you have a uv bulb in there they grow easily. they even grow on the window sill through glass-filtered light. they even grow sitting in a pot outside the enclosure waiting to be planted and accidentally getting a water spill on them!

 

[ForPhilbert]

If I were to plant any of those plants in his habitat, would I need to steer clear of ANY fertilizers? Thanks for your replies!!

 

[Edna]

If I were to plant any of those plants in his habitat, would I need to steer clear of ANY fertilizers? Thanks for your replies!!

I have a range of succulents in Torty's home. He sampled a couple of them when I first put them in, but since then has just enjoyed resting under them. Some of the plants I bought at first did not have well-developed root systems, so those are potted on the window sill growing and resting. I don't ever fertilize succulents, anyway, and they thrive in the heat and bright light of Torty's home.