(Very) early planning, a few questions.

[KelseaB]

Next spring my fiance and I are planning to get a baby Russian. It will be our first tortoise but not our first scaley baby. We have 4 ball pythons. We have also owned a bearded dragon and Tegu monitor.

I am planning to start it in a 2'x4' enclosure. It is closed top with two mesh circles for any heat needed. This is both for humidity and protection (we have 3 cats).

The main question I am having now is I was thinking about planting the cage now so it has time to grow. If I get some weed and tortoise safe seeds and plant them this far ahead do you think it will be able to root enough to be worth it or even with 6ish months of growing time will it probably still just be destroyed immediately?

We already have the heat bulbs and UVB light ready to go and when we get closer to time we will begin doing heat tests with a rock roughly shell height to be sure it is the best temperature.

I have been reading up a lot on the beginners mistakes and the care sheets on this forum but if you have some little known wisdom or extra advise I'd love to hear it!!

 

[wellington]

I wouldn't start the plants too early. Once they get too big and kinda go to seed, the torts don't seem to like them as much. It wouldn't be bad to start the early though, just not this early.

 

[KelseaB]

I wouldn't start the plants too early. Once they get too big and kinda go to seed, the torts don't seem to like them as much. It wouldn't be bad to start the early though, just not this early.

Good to know! Are there any I can start now? Maybe not the weeds but things like spider plants that just get bigger and don't really seed?

 

[wellington]

Yes, any plant that you buy from a store should be done now. You will need to repot it washing off as much of the dirt as possible then repot in fertilizer/pesticide free dirt. Then let it grow for months before the new growth won't be affected by the fertiler is was in. Check out http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk for safe plants.

 

[KelseaB]

Yes, any plant that you buy from a store should be done now. You will need to repot it washing off as much of the dirt as possible then repot in fertilizer/pesticide free dirt. Then let it grow for months before the new growth won't be affected by the fertiler is was in. Check out http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk for safe plants.

Awesome! I am glad you told me. I didn't see that mentioned anywhere before. I'll get that going this weekend so it has a full 6 months to grow out. Can I put them into the enclosure now or do I need to let them grow out and cut them down a lot before they go into the enclosure?

Do you know when I should start the seeds? I want to give them as much time as possible so they might at least stand a chance against the new baby!! Haha

 

[wellington]

You could put them in the enclosure now if you want.
When I planted seeds for my baby leopard I did it in coconut coir and within 2-3 days they were up already. If you want them really covering the enclosure, I would do 1-2 months out from arrival but you might have to trim them at least once before he comes, depending on how well they grow and spread.

 

[KelseaB]

Awesome! Thanks so much for your prompt answers!!

 

[Tortoise lover 2000]

And about the uvb bulbs. I would never recommend using a coiled bulb. The ones that most tortoise keepers use is a Mercury vapor bulb. They provide heat and uvb. Coiled bulbs can cause swelling in tortoises eyes or even blindness.ps I also have a russian

 

[KelseaB]

Question about that, I was planning on doing a florescent uvb bulb inside the tank but I've seen mixed info about if it is safe. The compact bulb for heat will be sitting in a 1/4" metal screen. It looks like

Will that mesh be enough to block the UVB out so I would need a tube light or should this be ok?

 

[Tortoise lover 2000]

This should be okay. But the real problem is that if the metal heats up it may start smoking but this is usually only with ceramic heat emmiters.

 

[KelseaB]

Cool. When it was a snake tank it was ok, no smoke, so it should be good.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Sorry, i have just posted links on you intro thread to things you seem to have already read.
In which case you will know, that unless it's a tiny baby, you will need an enclosure of 4 feet by 8 as a bare minimum.

 

[KelseaB]

Sorry, i have just posted links on you intro thread to things you seem to have already read.
In which case you will know, that unless it's a tiny baby, you will need an enclosure of 4 feet by 8 as a bare minimum.

No problem!! I did things kinda backwards and posted this before I saw the introduction thread lol!