Planning for future outside enclosure

[silvs17007]

We have a baby sulcata (6 months?) and she (he? Lol) is inside and doing great. We are slowly planning for her to move outside but currently our front yard is nothing but dirt. I previously had St Augustine grass and a few summers left without watering turned to this. My question is, what would be best to grow there to get ready for when baby is able to roam in the front? Can they eat St Augustine grass or should I plant some sort of ground cover instead? We live in San Antonio TX and summers are brutal. The good thing is that we have big trees to cover from full sun on most of the yard, but the bad thing is that some grass native to here like Bermuda grass doesn't do well in the shade. Thank you for your help. We're definitely in the early stages of planning but this is what we have to work with.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I’ll see if @Tom or maybe @EppsDynasty has some suggestions on what to plant! Just be aware she won’t be able to live outdoors full time till she’s around 8-10 inches, she’ll need to be in her closed chamber till then

Perhaps you might like looking through this for some future inspiration!
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/enclosure-inspiration.220597/

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

Look at this thread too, it tells how to provide proper shade for your tortoise: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/the-importance-of-deep-shade.123288/

 

[EppsDynasty]

Hello and Welcome. I am no expert there are others here with way more knowledge but I will try to help. As mentioned you will need to keep her/him inside until a little bigger. I would buy a grass seed that does not go dormant in the winter like Bermuda does, but you need to do your research on one that is safe. We are currently looking at different Fescue grasses. You will need to start with a small enclosure that is covered by netting or something similar to keep the birds out. If you look up Joshua Tree Reptile Haven on YouTube, FaceBook or Instagram that is us and in different videos you can see how we build the fences.

 

[Tom]

We have a baby sulcata (6 months?) and she (he? Lol) is inside and doing great. We are slowly planning for her to move outside but currently our front yard is nothing but dirt. I previously had St Augustine grass and a few summers left without watering turned to this. My question is, what would be best to grow there to get ready for when baby is able to roam in the front? Can they eat St Augustine grass or should I plant some sort of ground cover instead? We live in San Antonio TX and summers are brutal. The good thing is that we have big trees to cover from full sun on most of the yard, but the bad thing is that some grass native to here like Bermuda grass doesn't do well in the shade. Thank you for your help. We're definitely in the early stages of planning but this is what we have to work with.

You'll need a large indoor closed chamber that is kept humid and warm until the baby gets to around 8-10 inches. My general rule of thumb when they are smaller than this is one hour of sunning time per day, per inch of tortoise. More than this is not beneficial and can do damage.

When the time comes, either St. Augustine or Bermuda are great. Grow as much as you can for the tortoise. Grape vines (for the leaves, not the fruit), hibiscus, rose of Sharon, lavatera, opuntia cactus stands and lots of other stuff is great. You can also plant patches of the fantastic Testudo seed mix from torotisesupply.com. Just know that anything the tortoise can reach will be eaten or trampled. If possible, you can do a "rotating pasture" system where parts of the enclosure are blocked off to re-grow while other parts are grazed.

Fruitless mulberry trees and willow trees make great shade in summer and drop their leaves in winter when the tortoise needs full sun for warmth.

When the time comes, we can link the night box threads for you to build too.

 

[Yvonne G]

Make sure the leaves from those trees are not toxic. Sulcatas eat everything.

 

[silvs17007]

Make sure the leaves from those trees are not toxic. Sulcatas eat everything.

We are surrounded by oak trees. I think my backyard is a red oak and the front two different oak trees. Are these okay for tortoise to be around?