Making a bioactive enclosure

musiclover18

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ontario
I'm making a bioactive enclosure, I'm wondering if I can use soil out of my garden? It's getting to the point where soil isn't being sold as winter is near in my area
 

jaizei

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How big/where is the enclosure? What type of soil is it? I doubt soil from outside by itself would work well, and you would probably have to amend it considerably to make an ideal bioactive substrate. A soilless mix is generally used because it is lighter, and can be made to specifics.
 

Levi the Leopard

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I have used native dirt from my yards before. Not exclusively and not routinely, but occasionally as a part of the mixture. You have to weigh the risks/benefits for yourself though. I knew my yard was untreated and no toxic chemicals were poured on that area. Plus, it was pulled from their outdoor enclosure making it dirt they were exposed to anyway. So, I was confident the risk of harmful contaminates was low. Acquired some native spring tails this way, too.
 

Blackdog1714

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I add cypress bark to beef up my special compost pile that gets no food stuffs. Just dirt and leaves. I have. Massive rolly polly colony in my Leopard enclosure and it does a wonderful job cleaning up. Side note be careful with rolly pollys as they need bio mass to eat and will much on live plants to supplement their intake. Found this out in a tarantula tank that had a nettle plant one day and then stems the next 🤣
 
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