Leaf Litter Questions

edibug1 · #1 07-01-2010, 12:14 PM

Okay, I am in the process of setting up my first vivarium, and was just collecting leaf litter the other day. I need to know if magnolia and hawthorn leaves are safe for darts. Also, I have searched the forums multiple times for info on good leaf litter sterilization, but found nothing. If anyone could direct me to a thread or site with info on that, that'd be great. Thanks!

Grimm · #2 07-01-2010, 12:21 PM

Magnolia leaves are great and are one of the most popular for dart enclosures, not to sure about Hawthorn tho.

tclipse · #3 07-07-2010, 11:55 AM

magnolia leaves are great.. a pretty good sterilization method-

1) make sure you're collecting from an area where pesticides aren't used.
2) rinse
3) let the leaves dry out (not just from the rinse... let them get brown and crunchy)
4) rinse again
5) place in a pot of boiling water for 3 minutes or so
6) dry 'em, and you're good to go.

Make sure you let them dry fully, this takes care of chytrid, and the boiling will take care of most of the bacterial baddies. There are very few things that can live through both of these processes.. this is the same method that many dart frog supply vendors use with their leaves.

Grimm · #4 07-07-2010, 12:16 PM

Substrate Notes: Gettin' Ready for Dart Frogs

Should have given you this in the beginning lol

edibug1 · #5 07-07-2010, 06:07 PM

Thanks! I still wish I knew if hawthorne leaves were safe, though...

WannabeVivMaster · #6 07-07-2010, 11:29 PM

I struggled with the perfect substrate for my first and only dart frog vivarium. I decided to do the following (I'm no expert but it has been working for me):
1. about 4 parts coco fiber
2. about 1 part non fertilized top soil
3. crunch up a couple large hand fulls of dried oak tree leaves (yes, the ones from the yard)
That's it! Not sure how everybody else on this forum feels but it has worked for me. I'm growing: Java Moss, Baby Tears, Prayer Plant, Heart Leaf Philodendrom and Oak Leaf Creeping Fig. ( Those are pretty easy plants to grow)
Springtails are keeping themselves alive and abundant in the vivarium as a supplemental food source for dendrobate dart frogs.
I'm also only using 1 T-8 flourescent (sp) tube light (another no-no. I plan to switch to a double T-5 fixture in the future but the single T-8 is keeping everything looking green without too much stretching. I want to switch to a double T-5 in hopes of bringing out the color in 3 neo bromeliads growing epithetically (again, probably spelled wrong) on wood in the viv)
I would suggest using a false bottom with egg crate ( flourscent light diffuser - bought at Menards) and fiber glass screen (bought from Menards). I used 2" PVC pipe to lift the false bottom from the bottom of the 29 gal glass aquarium. I like the 2" lift because I can hand mist the tank at least once a day and only have to remove the water from the bottom about once every 2 months (the water is great fertilizer for other house plants).
I know I'm getting a little long winded, especially coming from a "New Guy" but it has been working for me. Hope this helps

RecycledAgain · #7 07-08-2010, 05:31 PM

I would suggest you chunk up that soil mix a bit. I had problems with matting initially using a similar mix to yours. I would add in 1 or 2 parts of "chunk" Orchid bark/fern bark /fiber any solid media to break up the soil mix. I have experienced much better results with the chunk.

Dan

froggsong · #8 07-08-2010, 05:47 PM

lol... chunk it up! rofl...

I do agree, I've always had better results with pebble sized gravel and/or bark mixed into my soil.

RecycledAgain · #9 07-09-2010, 03:31 PM

I should probably put up a disclaimer .. before I say anything regarding plants and soil.. Whats wrong with "chunk" its the perfect layman's term ..llol

Dan

Est. 1983 · #10 07-12-2010, 03:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tclipse

magnolia leaves are great.. a pretty good sterilization method-

1) make sure you're collecting from an area where pesticides aren't used.
2) rinse
3) let the leaves dry out (not just from the rinse... let them get brown and crunchy)
4) rinse again
5) place in a pot of boiling water for 3 minutes or so
6) dry 'em, and you're good to go.

Make sure you let them dry fully, this takes care of chytrid, and the boiling will take care of most of the bacterial baddies. There are very few things that can live through both of these processes.. this is the same method that many dart frog supply vendors use with their leaves.

how long does it take for the leaves to get 'brown and crunchy', I picked some the other day from a magnolia tree and rinsed them and was just wondering how long it would take them to start to brown...