2 hours ago
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Miss Kitty
Just picked up Miss Kitty from the Animal Protection League. She is drunk with her tongue hanging out and she can't go outside for 48 hours. Miss Kitty was a stray that wandered up several months ago. She was obviously young and at one time a house cat. We were sure she would only have one or two kittens survive seeing as how it had to be her first pregnancy and she had them out in the woods. Fire Ants are vicious in this area, and small newborns are consumed by them on a regular basis, they have decimated ground nesting bird populations in Texas. But one day she decided the best place for them to be was in my house, and of course I couldn't turn them out....that is untill they were moving around on there own and pooping little kitty poops. So outside they went. I underestimated how difficult it would be to get rid of them....
Garden
I used the square foot gardening method, the book is well worth the 20 bucks btw. I bought most of the plants already sprouted. My plants aren't near as big as some of my neighbors, but I have been pruning the tomatoes in order to have a single stem, and a hail storm set me back by about a month. my tomatoes however are sweeter and far prettier. The bell peppers I planted right after the hail storm are more then twice the size of the first pair.
Immediately after planting, My boyfriend says it was the spring equinox:
On Apr 1st, about a week after planting the second bed:
Today:
Aren't my tomatoes pretty?
I'll be eating this big one tomorrow for sure.
Immediately after planting, My boyfriend says it was the spring equinox:
On Apr 1st, about a week after planting the second bed:
Today:
Aren't my tomatoes pretty?
I'll be eating this big one tomorrow for sure.
More Plants
Bugleweed "Chocolate Chip":Ajuga x
Sun to Partial Shade, adapts to dry or moist conditions,Vigorous and disease resistant.
And it has a nice purple color that doesn't come through well in the photo.
Button Fern: Pellaea rotundifolia
it will get way to big but I needed something with more hieght.
I found these at the garden center, the next ones came from Petco.
Im pretty sure the one on the far left is a bromeliad, and I have another one in with the Austrailian White's Tree Frogs, its in sad shape but will live. I thought the red in the two taller plants would go well the the purple colors in the bungleweed and the hosta and the bright light green of some of the other plants.I'm keeping the plants that will get to big for the terreriums to a minimum but I need there hieght and textures to add more variety. I would also like to incorporate some lucky bamboo, its strength will come in handy in the AWTF enclosure. The Anoles,Skinks, and Green Tree Frogs are a lot lighter and wont cause any problems with the more delicate plants.
The plants that require less water and more light like the mint , will be located near the top and shade plants will be located under other plants or closer to the water to compensate.
Sun to Partial Shade, adapts to dry or moist conditions,Vigorous and disease resistant.And it has a nice purple color that doesn't come through well in the photo.
Button Fern: Pellaea rotundifolia
it will get way to big but I needed something with more hieght.I found these at the garden center, the next ones came from Petco.
Im pretty sure the one on the far left is a bromeliad, and I have another one in with the Austrailian White's Tree Frogs, its in sad shape but will live. I thought the red in the two taller plants would go well the the purple colors in the bungleweed and the hosta and the bright light green of some of the other plants.I'm keeping the plants that will get to big for the terreriums to a minimum but I need there hieght and textures to add more variety. I would also like to incorporate some lucky bamboo, its strength will come in handy in the AWTF enclosure. The Anoles,Skinks, and Green Tree Frogs are a lot lighter and wont cause any problems with the more delicate plants.The plants that require less water and more light like the mint , will be located near the top and shade plants will be located under other plants or closer to the water to compensate.
The Plan, Two 20L Aquariums
So, here was the original plan:
But this has sense been revised. I've only built the rock wall (in green), but both realizing that the dirt ( possibly a combination of eco-earth and peat moss compost) cant sit in that much water, and that I actually need a larger body of water then that. If I were to follow this plan not only would the dirt turn rancid but there would only be about 1 to 1.5 gal of water.
Rock wall, built with river stones and clear silicon:
This is a pic with it only half finished. I now know I should have used black silicon because the clear silicon will yellow and the black silicon will look more natural with algea on it. There are small holes in the wall to allow water flow and hopefully for a few single stems of plants
This is closer to the new revised plan, the gravel layer is raised and only about a 1/2 inch of substrate is submerged, enough for a wick effect but not so much that causes it to rot, and not shown in the diagram, the planting shelves will be expanded to make a terracing effect. The black lines are pvc pipe, this will shorten my growing area but will increase my water volume. I will have to include soem sort fo grating that is large enought to allow fish to pass back and forth in order to hide and be more comfortable but small enough that frogs can not get accidentally traped underneath. This will give me about 5 gal of water and room to include a heater or filter possibly, therefore the grate will have to be removable. I'm thinking plexiglass cut to fit with holes drilled in it.
The two aquariums will be almost miror images in design and hopefully look like one complete terrerium with a divider. Plant placement will be completly different though.
But this has sense been revised. I've only built the rock wall (in green), but both realizing that the dirt ( possibly a combination of eco-earth and peat moss compost) cant sit in that much water, and that I actually need a larger body of water then that. If I were to follow this plan not only would the dirt turn rancid but there would only be about 1 to 1.5 gal of water.Rock wall, built with river stones and clear silicon:
This is a pic with it only half finished. I now know I should have used black silicon because the clear silicon will yellow and the black silicon will look more natural with algea on it. There are small holes in the wall to allow water flow and hopefully for a few single stems of plants
This is closer to the new revised plan, the gravel layer is raised and only about a 1/2 inch of substrate is submerged, enough for a wick effect but not so much that causes it to rot, and not shown in the diagram, the planting shelves will be expanded to make a terracing effect. The black lines are pvc pipe, this will shorten my growing area but will increase my water volume. I will have to include soem sort fo grating that is large enought to allow fish to pass back and forth in order to hide and be more comfortable but small enough that frogs can not get accidentally traped underneath. This will give me about 5 gal of water and room to include a heater or filter possibly, therefore the grate will have to be removable. I'm thinking plexiglass cut to fit with holes drilled in it.The two aquariums will be almost miror images in design and hopefully look like one complete terrerium with a divider. Plant placement will be completly different though.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Kittens
They have gone to a local store front to be given away and will find new homes soon. They were to cute, I'll miss them, but I wont miss the destruction they unleashed on my garden.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Plant Resources
I collected these plants from The Home and Garden Center in Longview Texas, they have a spectacular aray of marginal plants, ferns, trees and flowers that I have never found at many other nurseries, many of which would make great terrarium plants, thanks to their very knowledgeable staff.
Corsican Mint: Mentha requienii
I hope to use this in th top portions of some of the terreriums where it wont get much water but plenty of humidity, it needs little soil and lots of light, mostly intense multiple wavelength light, so good for terreriums with reptile and/or reef lighting.
Side note:Links do not do justice to this plants smell, it fills the room, the slightest touch gives a super frangrant release of pleasureable scent
Peacock Moss: Selaginella uncinata
Guaranteed to do well in a terrerium, and to also sense when it is winter outside and change colors.
The next four plants:
Hosta 'Elegans': Hosta sieboldiana
link1
link2
Info from card: Partial shade to shade, adapts well to dry or wet conditions, 30 to 36' tall, foliage is sricking blue grey and more so in brighter light, resistant to insect damage.
asparagus fern:
This is supposed to be a variety of asparagus fern and should with proper cultivation, (ie. trimings and basicly bonsai-ing it) should create a feathery fern like leaf, but i have yet to find any documentation as such
Club Moss:Selaginella canaliculata
So pretty, the pic doesnt do it justice, and DENSE
Creeping Jenny: Lysimachia nummularia
It was guaranteed that it would be shade loving and "swampy", i found it stashed it under plant racks in partially shaded greenhouse, all six pots were quite healthy but sparse compared to the other plants, in my opinion all things point to a shade loving marginal.
I hope to use all these in my next posted project/s, two 20L aquariums turned on end for frogs.....of various species
Corsican Mint: Mentha requienii
I hope to use this in th top portions of some of the terreriums where it wont get much water but plenty of humidity, it needs little soil and lots of light, mostly intense multiple wavelength light, so good for terreriums with reptile and/or reef lighting.Side note:Links do not do justice to this plants smell, it fills the room, the slightest touch gives a super frangrant release of pleasureable scent
Peacock Moss: Selaginella uncinata
Guaranteed to do well in a terrerium, and to also sense when it is winter outside and change colors.The next four plants:
Hosta 'Elegans': Hosta sieboldiana
link1
link2
Info from card: Partial shade to shade, adapts well to dry or wet conditions, 30 to 36' tall, foliage is sricking blue grey and more so in brighter light, resistant to insect damage.asparagus fern:
This is supposed to be a variety of asparagus fern and should with proper cultivation, (ie. trimings and basicly bonsai-ing it) should create a feathery fern like leaf, but i have yet to find any documentation as suchClub Moss:Selaginella canaliculata
So pretty, the pic doesnt do it justice, and DENSECreeping Jenny: Lysimachia nummularia
It was guaranteed that it would be shade loving and "swampy", i found it stashed it under plant racks in partially shaded greenhouse, all six pots were quite healthy but sparse compared to the other plants, in my opinion all things point to a shade loving marginal.I hope to use all these in my next posted project/s, two 20L aquariums turned on end for frogs.....of various species
Progress
I have made progress on two projects today.Creepy, an Argentinian Ornate Horned Toad or a Pac man frog as pet stores often call them, so called because he tracks you as you go around the room like an old style portrait painting, got his habitat upgraded today.
This is the two and a half gallon aquarium that he was in, mostly because i was to lazy to set up the 10 gal this week. I had picked up a elephant ear variety and an aluminum plant to put in his aquarium at Wal-mart. I am using straight Eco-Earth in his aquarium with some sphagnum moss around the plants for stability, moisture and because it looks nice. On further speculation, I should have put down a layer of gravel to keep some water out of the substrate. Here is a closeup of Creepy half burried in his dirt and an overveiw of his habitat :
In the front is the elephant ear, the middle, is a plant that I dont remember (sorry) and in the back is peacock moss.
I'm hopeing to discover what ratio of plants to water to animals to poop creats the most stable environment. The peacock fern has a very fine root system that should spread as the plant does, once it is established I hope to be able to stop changing the substrate. As it is, I am only changing the substrates about once every 4 or 6 weeks. I pick out poop about twice a week. I feed Creepy 2 or 3 times a week with both small and large crickets, Dusting with ReptoCal each time since he doesnt eat them all at once and the longer they are in the enclosure, the more they will have groomed the dust off of themselves. He is sharing the UVB and A lighting with the bearded dragons that I am baby sitting for a friend.
No independant heat source untill winter, ambient temp is 75-81 degrees at night, I set the A?C to 80 during the day while I'm gone. Since the habitate is in a window with the blinds half closed it gets some direct and indirect sunlight, which also causes the humididty to increase, no exact measure is available, just evidence by the condensation on the inside of he glass. I estimate the interior temp at about 90 in direct sunlight. I will try to actually measure it on my next day off.
This is the two and a half gallon aquarium that he was in, mostly because i was to lazy to set up the 10 gal this week. I had picked up a elephant ear variety and an aluminum plant to put in his aquarium at Wal-mart. I am using straight Eco-Earth in his aquarium with some sphagnum moss around the plants for stability, moisture and because it looks nice. On further speculation, I should have put down a layer of gravel to keep some water out of the substrate. Here is a closeup of Creepy half burried in his dirt and an overveiw of his habitat :
In the front is the elephant ear, the middle, is a plant that I dont remember (sorry) and in the back is peacock moss. I'm hopeing to discover what ratio of plants to water to animals to poop creats the most stable environment. The peacock fern has a very fine root system that should spread as the plant does, once it is established I hope to be able to stop changing the substrate. As it is, I am only changing the substrates about once every 4 or 6 weeks. I pick out poop about twice a week. I feed Creepy 2 or 3 times a week with both small and large crickets, Dusting with ReptoCal each time since he doesnt eat them all at once and the longer they are in the enclosure, the more they will have groomed the dust off of themselves. He is sharing the UVB and A lighting with the bearded dragons that I am baby sitting for a friend.
No independant heat source untill winter, ambient temp is 75-81 degrees at night, I set the A?C to 80 during the day while I'm gone. Since the habitate is in a window with the blinds half closed it gets some direct and indirect sunlight, which also causes the humididty to increase, no exact measure is available, just evidence by the condensation on the inside of he glass. I estimate the interior temp at about 90 in direct sunlight. I will try to actually measure it on my next day off.
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