Kiwi Berry, Mandavilla, Trumpet Vines?

[Bokaru]

So I'm trying to avoid spending a whole lot of money right now since Im out of a job. Im trying to change out the plants in my cham's cage since Philodendrons and ivy are a no no.

I have already placed tree limbs in the cage for my chameleon to climb up, but I need some green. I would like to grow a vine type plant and have a few to chose from.

We are growing Kiwi berries out back and I know that they can be cut and will re-root in water. I also have Mandavilla and Trumpet vines but Im not sure how well they will re-root.

Does anyone know if any of these would be poisonous to my Senegal? Also, I know some people try to feed their chams fruit for nutrients. Are kiwis a good fruit to feed them?

Thanks

 

[Syn]

Why not just use normal plants? Pothos is great, ficus works wonders, and umbrella plants can hold the weight of an adult chameleon as they get bigger.

If you're up to the challenge, try a Schefflera.

 

[Lizardlover]

I use trumpet vine is some of my outdoor enclosures and it grows nicely. Sabrina, the OP stated they were low on money, which is why they wanted to use something they had growing in their yard already. Trumpet vine doesnt grow from cuttings but the roots aren't too deep and as long as you get a piece of the root th plant can recover and grow.

 

[Syn]

A lot of those plants are on sale, I picked up a few pothos for $2 a piece at Home Depot, good sized ones, too. I figured that was not too expensive.....

 

[KClark]

Why not just use normal plants? Pothos is great, ficus works wonders, and umbrella plants can hold the weight of an adult chameleon as they get bigger.

If you're up to the challenge, try a Schefflera.

schefflera is acctually one of the hardiest plants out there and i find them at lowes/home depot for real great prices! i water mine about once a week and its flourishing!! :] and i think they also call it the umbrella plant? but not too sure

 

[Bokaru]

Thanks for the replies. I didnt think of the end of the season sales on plants. Might be a good time to start purchasing. I would still like to use some plants I already have available here if possible, but if no one knows if they are poisonous or not I'll probably avoid it.

The cage is 2x2x3' and I dont have a whole ton of room for a tree type plant since I have branches taking up space right now so I would like to keep to vines for the moment.

Ill attempt the trumpet vine since they look nice and I have placed peppers on them before. he seemed to like them a lot.

 

[justjumpit621]

Check here, I love this reference: http://www.flchams.com/safe_plant_list.asp

 

[Syn]

schefflera is acctually one of the hardiest plants out there and i find them at lowes/home depot for real great prices! i water mine about once a week and its flourishing!! :] and i think they also call it the umbrella plant? but not too sure

D'oh yeah they are hardy. I get my plant names mixed up, I was thinking hibiscus and typed schefflera.

Kayla, that list is a little iffy. Apparently some of the plants are toxic, and plants that aren't listed are commonly used.

 

[Bokaru]

Did a little reading. All reports say Mandavilla is not necessarily poisonous, but is related to poisonous plants and suspected to be. Kiwi berry is not and trumpet is not (Make sure its trumpet vine and not angel trumpet or a similar plant because they are fairly dangerous.)

These reports covered human, small pets and foul.As for reptiles, Im not entirely sure, but I would figure them to be safe as well.

 

[VeiledOwner87]

I use trumpet vine is some of my outdoor enclosures and it grows nicely. Sabrina, the OP stated they were low on money, which is why they wanted to use something they had growing in their yard already. Trumpet vine doesnt grow from cuttings but the roots aren't too deep and as long as you get a piece of the root th plant can recover and grow.

i think trumpet vines are gorgeous, we have our basic cliches, and too be honest, im kind of getting sick of same old pothos, umbrellas and ficus'. i know there are a bunch of other suitable plants, but not enough colour. so kuddos on the trumpet vines. if i woulda known these were safe, i would have cut down a butt load from my grandmama's house

 

[VeiledOwner87]

A lot of those plants are on sale, I picked up a few pothos for $2 a piece at Home Depot, good sized ones, too. I figured that was not too expensive.....

free is still better than 2$

 

[Syn]

free is still better than 2$

I never said it wasn't.

 

[justjumpit621]

D'oh yeah they are hardy. I get my plant names mixed up, I was thinking hibiscus and typed schefflera.

Kayla, that list is a little iffy. Apparently some of the plants are toxic, and plants that aren't listed are commonly used.

Isn't FLChams supposed to be a good place?

 

[Lovereps]

Yes, FLChams is a good place

I haven't read any posts that point-out specific plants on their list as being toxic.
I can't help but wonder if the comment is really just misinformation that just keeps being echoed.
My suspicion is that someone thought that a particular plant was safe, based on its common name, rather than scientific name and then mistakenly labels the list as containing unsafe plants.
A perfect example of this would be "jasmine".
One jasmines is Jasmine officinale grandiflorum, which is on the list as safe--along with its scientific name.
Another plant commonly called jasmine is actually Cestrum nocturnum--which is not on the list because it is toxic.
If anyone can point-out any specific plants on the FLChams list that are actually unsafe, then it would be a service to all of us if you let us know by posting.

 

[VeiledOwner87]

lets all think back to the wild, a lot of these plants are already in their enviornment. and also too, every plant is toxic to some effect. eating too much of one thing could make a chameleon sick, but doesnt mean it will do damage like kill them.
(ie. Toxicity and Irritants
Schefflera arboricola has a very low toxicity level when eaten. Large amounts of the plant would have to be consumed to be of concern to most chameleons. Caution should be used when using this plant with a chameleon that is known to be a big plant eater)

that is from our website here, and i have never once seen my chameleon eat from this plant. and keep in mind that NOT all chameleons will eat plants, and plant eaters will NOT always eat whatever plants are in their enclosure. My veiled used to have a munch of every plant i had in her cage when she was younger except for my schefflera, now, she only will eat hibiscus. my K.Multi. has never once been interested in a live plant.

My girlfriends male veiled, will destroy any plant you put in there, and plants listed on the forums that you have to watch out for, has never once made him ill or have done damage. your animal needs to consume vasts amounts of it. every chameleon is different, and every chameleions immunity is different. so all in all, i think FL's plant list is fine, plentiful.... also too, Chris would be bitting at Mike's heels if it wasnt true lol

 

[Syn]

I haven't read any posts that point-out specific plants on their list as being toxic.
I can't help but wonder if the comment is really just misinformation that just keeps being echoed.
My suspicion is that someone thought that a particular plant was safe, based on its common name, rather than scientific name and then mistakenly labels the list as containing unsafe plants.
A perfect example of this would be "jasmine".
One jasmines is Jasmine officinale grandiflorum, which is on the list as safe--along with its scientific name.
Another plant commonly called jasmine is actually Cestrum nocturnum--which is not on the list because it is toxic.
If anyone can point-out any specific plants on the FLChams list that are actually unsafe, then it would be a service to all of us if you let us know by posting.

Sometimes it doesn't have to be the toxicity of the plant, rather the problems it can cause.

For example, the Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica decora):

i dont need any studies , i found out from first hand experience. its not so much the toxicity of latex thats at issue. latex is fairly low in toxicity and is not likely to cause an adverse reaction just from contact with either liquid or dry latex. the problem comes from he fact that latex is sticky and not easily wiped off, and when it dries, it dries like varnish, at which point it is almost impossible to get off. when i first got the male in my avatar, i got some latex on him. i had placed him in a rubber plant for about 10 min while i made some last min cage adjustments. when i went to put him in his cage i noticed he had snapped a upper branch on the plant and managed to get a dribble on him about the size of the paper portion of a match, by the time i noticed it, it had already partially dried. my attempt to dry blot it got most of the liquid portion off, but the perimeter of the dribble had aready dried. i tried gently washing with warm soapy water and toothbrush, which did get most of it off, but some residue remained that was not coming off by any means. i'll admit it did not cause him any significant health problems, but that area of the skin remained affected through at least a couple of sheds, and it was a couple of months before his skin reached the point where you could never tell it had happened. im fully convinced that had he gotten any more on him, or gotten it in multiple places, or in his eyes, that it would have posed a significant, possibly even fatal, health risk. others can do what they please, but if somebody asks me, i am voting no on the rubber plants. jmo

As far as the plants that are toxic, this list was suggested once on another forum I read, but since I didn't post in it I can't find it again, and they had named around 3 plants that were toxic and stopped there.

The plants could have been removed from the list since then.

 

[Lovereps]

According to a number of sites on the internet, both Mandevilla and Trumpet Vine are known to be toxic.
Melissa Kaplan provides some excellent information about reptile safe and unsafe plants---as well as plants which can cause mechanical injury: http://www.anapsid.org/resources/plants.html

VeiledOwner87, Hibiscus must be incredibly delicious plants.
My first K. multi never sampled his Ficus benjamina.
My 2 young K. multis seem to take delight in giving their Hibiscus plants' leaves the swiss cheese look

lets all think back to the wild, a lot of these plants are already in their enviornment. and also too, every plant is toxic to some effect. eating too much of one thing could make a chameleon sick, but doesnt mean it will do damage like kill them.

I have to disagree with you on this point.
While many plants have a mild toxicity, some have no known toxicity and there are quite a number of plants which are highly toxic.
Prime examples of the latter are Rosary Pea and Castor Bean. A single Rosary Pea seed has caused death.
One or two Castor Bean seeds are near the lethal dose for adults.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/lawn_garden/poison/poison.html
While the specific plants which are toxic to people may be different than those which are toxic to chams, I don't doubt that the ingestion of even a small amount of some "chameleon toxic" plants can kill your cham.
In the wild, despite the hundreds or thousands of plants chams have access to, I suspect that some chams do eat the wrong kinds of plants and die.
In captivity, your cham only has a choice of one or two plants to sample.
If a plant is known to be toxic, it's just foolish to keep it with your cham.


Syn, here's what is makes these forums great:
People sharing information to help others keep their chams safe and healthy.
The post by Xanthoman regarding the Ficus elastica is a prime example.
I would think that FLChams would have removed any offending plans from the list, assuming someone took the trouble to point-out the offending plants.
Thanks for sharing the info.

 

[Syn]

Syn, here's what is makes these forums great:
People sharing information to help others keep their chams safe and healthy.
The post by Xanthoman regarding the Ficus elastica is a prime example.
I would think that FLChams would have removed any offending plans from the list, assuming someone took the trouble to point-out the offending plants.
Thanks for sharing the info.

Indeed.

This may very well be the case, because one of the plants (I can't spell the name for my life) isn't there anymore? Maybe I am hallucinating.