Springtails

[Flick boy]

Hi so had to pick up some supplies today and even though I don't a bio active set up ,thought I would get a box of springtails to put in the pots on the enclosure floor ? Any thoughts dos/ don't (I haven't put them in yet) tia

 

[Serbianchameleon]

@jamest0o0

 

[Scaled Alchemy]

Just as a thought, if you choose to buy organic potting soil or some equivalent there is a chance the soil will have springtails within it. For a broader answer to your question I have used springtails in some enclosures and some without. Typically, I would use them in pots that contained plants that have a tendency to shed leaves (e.g., Ficus Benjamina). Plants that typically don't shed leaves (e.g., Parlor Palm) I don't add any springtails. I cant say much on the do's and don't(s) since they are fairly straight forward. You should be able to shake/pour/dump them into your pots and let them do their thing!

 

[Flick boy]

Yeah was going to put them in the ficus pot. Do yours end up in other plant pots outside the enclosure as I have quite a few plants in the house

 

[JuniorC]

So in one of my enclosures I have an umbrella tree and a ficus in pots. Would you guys recommend springtails in these? What is the purpose

 

[Flick boy]

They are one type of a clean up crew also people use woodlice. I don't have a bio setup but just thought I would get them only thing is I don't want them all over the house lmao

 

[Flick boy]

Bump

 

[Scaled Alchemy]

They are one type of a clean up crew also people use woodlice. I don't have a bio setup but just thought I would get them only thing is I don't want them all over the house lmao

They might migrate to another pot but you should not see them roaming around your house! They require moist environments and therefore will dry up and die before they can become a new roommate . I have kept several bioactive enclosures over the past years with vents close to the soil line and I have yet to see any venturing out.

 

[Scaled Alchemy]

So in one of my enclosures I have an umbrella tree and a ficus in pots. Would you guys recommend springtails in these? What is the purpose

I wouldn't say they are required by any means, but they add another level of biodiversity to your setups. I like them in my pots since they help break down organic materials (leaves, waste etc.). So let's say you forgot to clean up or were just lazy one week the springtails would help break down fungi and can keep the enclosures "cleaner". Definitely wouldn't use them as a way to avoid cleaning but they can help.

 

[Flick boy]

So just chucked the springtails in today and put a couple of pieces of cuttle fish bone down into the soil as well for them ( read that somewhere on a thread ) do any of yours use custodian fuel like arcadia also ?

 

[Scaled Alchemy]

So just chucked the springtails in today and put a couple of pieces of cuttle fish bone down into the soil as well for them ( read that somewhere on a thread ) do any of yours use custodian fuel like arcadia also ?

I don't use either cuttle bone or any "supplementation" like custodian fuel!

Also, I find that there are a lot of products on the market that are over advertised in general. That's were forums such as this one really help, they act as communal research so no one individual has to go out and buy all of these products. We all use information from one another, which helps from over spending on products that you don't really need! Granted there might be a certain time and place for some items, but from my experience the springtails don't need anything special.

 

[Flick boy]

But would cuttle bone and custodian fuel not be beneficial? ? If if there was not enough leaf litter or poo as I'm not bio yet ( even though bio / and naturalistic are only mild term's for a tank ,?

 

[Pearl Fields]

But would cuttle bone and custodian fuel not be beneficial? ? If if there was not enough leaf litter or poo as I'm not bio yet ( even though bio / and naturalistic are only mild term's for a tank ,?

I would think yeah it'd be beneficial, it just wouldn't be needed for the springtails to live. Although i do think it would definitely help them do better quicker. I just give my springtails fruit or something that molds, and they do great I think. So a bunch of food for the springtails right away seems to really help the population grow IME. I don't see how custodian fuel and the cuttlefish bone would not do the same.

 

[ERKleRose]

Cuttlebone and custodian fuel are for isopods. Springtails mainly eat brewer's yeast if you're culturing them

 

[Pearl Fields]

How did i not know they eat yeast! Good to know. They will also feed on mold though, yes?

 

[ERKleRose]

Yup!

 

[Flick boy]

Culturing means breeding is that correct?

 

[Pearl Fields]

yeah i think it just means breeding but someone else can say for sure

 

[ERKleRose]

Yup!

 

[Flick boy]

So as well as brewers yeast feeding rice? As I don't think there will be enough dead leaves / organic matter to sustain them