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New terrarium

I am new to Carnivorous plants and Terrariums (as my name suggests i'm big on marine/reef tanks) so i'll try not to sound like too much of a newbie
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I just finished setting up my terrarium, i used a 20gal high aquarium, i added 2-3" on rocks/pebbles on the bottom for drainage, added 1" of long fibered moss, and 2-3" of peat moss on top of that.
I divided the tank into two sides, one for regular plants (ferns and ivy) and the other for carnivorous plants. I currently have one VFT. I have the terrarium infront of a window but have decided that this probably wont be enough so i dedcied to add 4 20watt Normal Output flourscents (sp?) for supplemental ligthing. I have no cover on the terrarium and since its in the same room as my 125gal reef tank (10x12 room) i'm hoping humidity will be kept constant enough.
Is there any suggestions that people can offer me? What am i missing or what should i have done? any advice willbe appreciated since i am in fact a newbie.

Brian
 
Hi Brian,
Welcome to the forum! Your set up sounds fine, but I don't grow my VFT's in terraria. I just keep them in pots out on the deck. I reserve the terraria for plants that really need the high humidity, like some kinds of nepenthes. If you live in a very dry part of the country, I would put drosera (sundews) in a terrarium, too.
Also, VFT's require dormancy, so if you have plants in the terrarium that grow all year, you'll have to remove the VFT in the winter to let it sleep. You may want to concider putting all tropical or all desiduace (sp?) plants in the tank so you don't go crazy every fall.

Cheers!
 
welcome!!

i'd be worried about the soil for regular plants having minerals/fertilizers that would leach into the soil for cp's, which would spell certain death.

what i did is put a light diffuser (it's like a plastic grid .5 inches high, some people call it eggcrate and reefers sometimes use it to cover their tanks to acclimate corals to higher light levels) on the bottom of the tank. next i put a layer of garden cloth (the stuff that lets water go through but not dirt) the .5 inches of empty space that the eggcrate creates acts as a reseviour (sp?). after than, i fill in with the right soil. i dig a depression all the way down to the garden cloth so a small pipe can fit in. i use one of those hand-pumps for gasoline so empty out extra water in the bottom. the reason i need to empty extra water is because i regularly flood the terrarium in order to rid it of any nasty minerals that might accumulate. the eggcrate also prevents anerobic (sp?) bacteria from growing which keeps the soil fresh and clean.

it sounds overly complicated , but it isn't.
i'd be careful of keeping the terrarium in front of a window. natural sun can heat up the tank to dangerous levels (you wouldn't put a couple big iwasaki's in a tiny little 20 gal, would you?)
 
Welcome to the forums! We have something in common. I used to take care of fresh and salt water fish and invertebrates at a tropical fish wholesaler in Buffalo. I see you are from Albany. I lived in Albany for a year, right out of college. Ever hear of Manning Blvd?

Both previous repliers know their stuff. The one just can't spell deciduous!
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hehe, theres ALOT i can't spell!
 
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