Organic's?

tortoisetime565

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What kind of organic/pesticide tortoise safe moss and other seeds do you buy! I saw a 11 pound coco coir block? Is that better than Eco earth by zoo med? Any lists or ideas will help! Thanks Guys and Gals!
 

Tom

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I get seeds from tortoisesupply.com or groworganic.com.

I buy those large coco coir blocks from the garden center instead of the pet store ones. Its the same stuff for a fraction of the price.
 

tortoisetime565

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Tom said:
I get seeds from tortoisesupply.com or groworganic.com.

I buy those large coco coir blocks from the garden center instead of the pet store ones. Its the same stuff for a fraction of the price.

Great thanks Tom. I never knew they had coco coir blocks other than the pet stores. I have two in opened 3 packs from pets mart that I will be returning and I'll just buy a big block from a garden store. Any specific brands for the coco coir? I ordered a sulcata grass mix from a website and it's sprouting very nicely. I want to grow moss in their out door enclosures. I can get a 4x4 inch square of it at a nursery but I've never hat luck growing it. Probably because Rupert eats anything green.... But still... No luck. Lol
 

Tom

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I've never had any luck with indoor plants unless they are in pots and out of reach. Anything the tortoises can touch gets trampled or eaten.
 

tortoisetime565

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Tom said:
I've never had any luck with indoor plants unless they are in pots and out of reach. Anything the tortoises can touch gets trampled or eaten.

Boy, did I learn that the hard way....... Lol. As soon as this frozen mess is cleared up I am going to seed soooooo many weeds and grasses and plants. I just need some good websites. I am going to cover the tortoise out door enclosures with coco coir also. So, thanks for your help! Is there Any specifics you suggest for different species? I have redfoots, a sulcata, and Russians.
 

Tom

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I would not use coco coir outside. Just regular growing soil with no additives like perlite.

I like Tyler's "Testudo Mix" for every species. For the sulcatas I like the "Premium Horse Pasture Mix" from groworganic.com. That stuff just grows and grows. Its amazing and you need A LOT of food for a sulcata.

Don't forget grapevines, hibiscus, spineless opuntia cactus and mulberry trees too. I recently discovered lavatera. Got my first flowers two days ago. Blue hibiscus and rose of Sharon are great. I grow endive, arugula, all sorts of squash plants for the leaves and blooms, clover, alfalfa... Its just goes on and on...
 

tortoisetime565

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Tom said:
I would not use coco coir outside. Just regular growing soil with no additives like perlite.

I like Tyler's "Testudo Mix" for every species. For the sulcatas I like the "Premium Horse Pasture Mix" from groworganic.com. That stuff just grows and grows. Its amazing and you need A LOT of food for a sulcata.

Don't forget grapevines, hibiscus, spineless opuntia cactus and mulberry trees too. I recently discovered lavatera. Got my first flowers two days ago. Blue hibiscus and rose of Sharon are great. I grow endive, arugula, all sorts of squash plants for the leaves and blooms, clover, alfalfa... Its just goes on and on...

Wow, great! Thanks so much! We have a HUGE grape vine. Unfortunately we moved across the street from the house that has it so I'll have to buy a new one and let it over run the fences! Can they eat the grapes? I never grew any successfully. But I cut them grape leafs almost every day and they loved them. I can tell my sulcata is on a growth spurt she is always hungry now! So I'll have to hook her up with a buffet of grasses.
 

Tom

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I don't feed grapes to mine. To high in sugar. If they accidentally ate one, it wouldn't kill them, but since its not "good" for them, I don't offer it. I have read that if you cut or pinch off the budding grape clusters you'll get more vine and leaf growth. This is what I do, but I haven't tested whether I get more leaves or not. The leaves are a great tortoise food. I wonder if the new tenants would let you "borrow" some new growth in spring?
 

tortoisetime565

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Well it's our house for a while. We have barely moved anything it seems. It's in the drive way so even if they say no I can "borrow" some while they are at work. I'm going to plant my own also. I know that if you cut the vine back the grapes will get huge. But I've never heard of the leafs getting bigger, or producing more. I'll have to look into it. This will be the first year that they will be able to go out side. So I'm going to offer them tons of veggies and other plants and grasses. I'm really excited.
 
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