What blossoms will they nibble?

[elfbane]

I'm planning a big diy cage and want some growing snacks suggestions?

 

[ZacharyLeesWife]

My female will snack on hibiscus until it's bare!

 

[Andee]

You will likely not be able to keep a hibiscus alive in your cage unless you are willing to spend a lot of money on lighting. In my opinion they do best with two different grow lights one aimed toward growing the plant itself and one aimed to their blossoms.

 

[carol5208]

You mean Veilds? Most chameleons do not eat plants, but Veilds will. I know they can and will eat pothos and hibiscus flowers too

 

[ZacharyLeesWife]

You will likely not be able to keep a hibiscus alive in your cage unless you are willing to spend a lot of money on lighting. In my opinion they do best with two different grow lights one aimed toward growing the plant itself and one aimed to their blossoms.

I had 2 for her enclosure that I swapped out, a few days in the cage and a few under led grow lights. They both dropped all their leaves, so they're in rehab right now but I don't know if they'll pull through.

 

[KeopiCat]

I've heard that nasturtiums are good for chams too!

 

[Andee]

Hibiscus do best as rotational plants, but in my opinion to give a hibiscus enough time with just uvb lights for chameleons and natural sunlight you need around 3-5. However if you get a good grow light system, which often can be provided by using a quad system bought from light you reptiles. And filling it with a high quality arcadia uvb light, two different spectrum plant grow lights and then filling the last one with whatever you think is best or what Todd recommends. Often in order to produce consistent blossoms without natural sunlight a plant needs a specific spectrum of lighting.

 

[Andee]

I have not come across any nasturtiums but the ones that were used as ground cover in my backyard so I am not sure how they would act in a chameleon enclosure. I am not exactly sure if they could be used on a trellis or would be more useful if put on a living wall. However I do know that they are edible to humans and tortoises, and they grow annoyingly easily and are really hard to kill even in the worst growing circumstances.

 

[elfbane]

Thanks for the input! I actually have a hibiscus growing outside my home! If I can't put one in his cage I believe I found a good summer time outing place! It grows by our upstairs deck and our downstairs so he can safely access the higher parts without me loosing him !

 

[Andee]

I would think about maybe putting some sort of safety netting around the hibiscus outside before you put him on it, people have had a lot of trouble with birds of prey and their chameleons sitting outside with them without protective netting.

 

[ZacharyLeesWife]

One of my rescue iguanas Sophie used to love sunning on the patio ledge and the maintenance guys at my condo would throw her hibiscus flowers to snack on! It was hard to kill a hibiscus in Florida, but in Baltimore I can't keep them going.