New cage and live plant help!

[Preekoo]

Hello,

I just ordered a 24x24x36 cage last night from fl chams and a small 18-24" ficus tree to put in it. What things are necessary to be able to keep a live plant inside healthy and maintained? And also, should I put some rocks over the soil? And should I have a drainage system for the water in the ficus' pot? And last of all, do I need a certain bulb to give the plant the vitamins it needs or will my 5.0 uvb and 75 watt basking bulb's do the trick? Any comments or ideas are welcome

And btw I have a 6-7 month old male veiled. My care sheet is on my page

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

Put large river rocks over the soil, big enough so that there's no way the cham can swallow them. They should do fine on their own but you can get a plant light to help it even more. This is the cheapest one I can find. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lights-of-America-24-Fluorescent-Grow-Light-Fixture/16879945

 

[Preekoo]

Thanks Karma. I also read about how you need to drain the water from the pot so it doesnt rot the roots. How should i go about doing this?

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

I just have it in the pots and the excess water drains out with my drainage system for the rest of my cage.

 

[Preekoo]

Well in my current cage I just have a little tupaware container with a screen on top of it that sits under a plastic plant. I dis-infect it daily. And where his cage is at right now, i dont have enough room to set up a drainage system. But im moving his new cage onto a dresser with alot more room and I will try and set one up. Do I just need to drill some holes on the plastic sheet at the bottom? and for say...Put the cage in a wide but not very tall box and elevate the cage its self inside the thing so all the water drains out into it?

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

Show me a pic of what you'll be dealing with.

 

[Ulrich]

I have a planter drain pot under my cages with a hole in the base of the screen enclosure. Enclosure is on stilts. You don't need much space to do that and it will help not to disturb the Cham too often (in case it is not the most friendly type).

 

[Preekoo]

Sorry I didnt post up the pics. I got super side tracked all yestersay and I just got back from school. I'll work on posten up the pics.

 

[Preekoo]

There the dresser it will be on. Its only 19" from the front to back. So Im gona have to drill some levelers into the wall to level It out or sumthin. Im gona have a 18-24" ficus inside of it that I ordered from lll reptile. How should I set up a drainage system that will get rid of all the water from the dripper, my hand mistings, and plant's soil.

 

[azgnoinc]

The bottom of the cage you are getting is most likely pvc plastic or some other material that you can drill small holes in, and have it set up on a catch container underneath it- just be sure to hot glue some screen over the holes so you don't have to worry about any insects escaping from it.

 

[Preekoo]

The bottom of the cage you are getting is most likely pvc plastic or some other material that you can drill small holes in, and have it set up on a catch container underneath it- just be sure to hot glue some screen over the holes so you don't have to worry about any insects escaping from it.

Thanks bro

 

[maxttu]

You can get a double fixture or a 2nd fixture and use a 6500k fluorescent bulb for your plants. This will help maintain them inside.