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Jim's Large display paludarium

I recently built a large paludarium (a terrarium with a water feature, I had never heard that word before not so long ago). It is 60X30X48" tall. I have nearly always had a fish tank & put my self through school working in a nursery, so always had a lot of plants but never any CP before. I'd like to include one or two CP in this tank & found this site through one of the dart frog sites. Any way here are just a couple photos.





Be happy to answer any question (one reason is I plan on asking some question) but here is a rather long build thread that starts at the very beginning.

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/me.../133898-jims-display-paludarium-my-first.html

Will be looking for one or two lowland nepenthes. The temps in this tank are 80-82 day & low 70s night. One of the first things I saw here was a thread with photos of a N. tenuis which was the exact type plant I had hoped for, vining, small pitchers & not dense foliage. Then I learned they need pretty cool night temps.

One of the first things I learned about these plants is there hard to find for sale. I was told by the guy that told me about this site the best way to get them is trading. That only works if you have something to trade. I've found one or two venders that may be able to help but if you have any suggestions of plants or where to find them I'd be glad to hear 'em.

Thanks
Jim
 
Holy. Cow. That is gorgeous. I want one in every room of my house.

Well done, and good luck finding plants!
 
As you've discovered, you are going to have to choose which Nepenthes you acquire with their climate needs in mind; the highland types (which dominate the genus) must have cool night temps (mid fifties, and in some cases, lower) to thrive in the long term. There are a number of hybrids between the two types (warm growers and cool growers) that would be easy to grow, and pretty much any hybrid using N. ventricosa or N. maxima would be good choices. However, it might be best to avoid lowland species, since your day-to-night differential is barely ten degrees, and daytime highs you say are 82F at most, which may not be warm enough for many of the true lowland species. It is for this reason that I suggest you first try hybrids which are much easier to grow and will acclimate to a broader range of temps.

That said, I probably have a hybrid or two that would be suitable to try, if you are interested -- we can discuss options in private. (PM me if you want to know more)

PS: It isn't difficult to find Nepenthes for sale, but it helps to know who the vendors are -- it isn't easy to glean that information from a generic Web search. We aren't allowed to name vendors here (this forum is owned and operated by a plant supplier; http://www.flytrapshop.com/servlet/the-Nepenthes/Categories) but you can ask in private for recommendations.
 
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Jim,
Beautiful setup - congratulations. I love all of it but especially your 'rock' cliff. I read your thread over on the dart frog forum - have you had any leaching issues with the grout? Iirc, you covered the submerged rocks with an epoxy - was that necessary?
 
Lookin' good! x2 While I don't have any tenuis I can hook you up with a rooted N. ventricosa cutting if you just want something to play around with to get your feet wet.
 
Jim,
Beautiful setup - congratulations. I love all of it but especially your 'rock' cliff. I read your thread over on the dart frog forum - have you had any leaching issues with the grout? Iirc, you covered the submerged rocks with an epoxy - was that necessary?

I kept the rocks when done in a covered container & hosed them down every day for 30 days. I was told that would take care of the leaching issue & looks like it did because have had no problems. Most don't epoxy submerged grout rocks but since I filled those parts with lead so they would not float I was just adding a belt to my suspenders.
 
Lookin' good! x2 While I don't have any tenuis I can hook you up with a rooted N. ventricosa cutting if you just want something to play around with to get your feet wet.

Thank You, But I am working with a couple other sources right now & a way to lower the night temp some too. This is the most generous group I have ever had the pleasure of dealing with, both with help (had a couple mutable PMs with members here already) & offers of free starter plants! Had never thought of it before but I've been thinking about putting together another tank for other types of Cps.
 
Bitten by the bug of bug biting botanicals.

Best of luck! There are a lot of knowledgeable people here who can help you out. I think you'll be happy to find out that a lot of nice stuff can be grown without any kind of terrarium or supplemental conditioning. Feel free to hit me up again here or at the Dendro's again if you have any questions.
 
  • #10
Thanks for pointing me in this direction & the offer of more help still.

The frog forums & many venders have care sheets that give a synopses of what each critter needs in the way of temp, humidity, food, space etc. Is there some place that gives the high points of what all these different types of CP need? I have found some info but just a little here & there. Trying to figure out which of them would go with which.
 
  • #12
I would think N. ampullaria could adapt to those temperatures.
 
  • #13
The frog forums & many venders have care sheets that give a synopses of what each critter needs in the way of temp, humidity, food, space etc. Is there some place that gives the high points of what all these different types of CP need? I have found some info but just a little here & there. Trying to figure out which of them would go with which.
Jim,
Barry's faq (that was quoted above) is probably the best thing but a quick chart showing elevation ranges may give you more of what you're looking for. This is a sticky in the Nep section. The chart provides the basic sections, but even within, there are fuzzy areas. For example, N. fusca is listed as intermediate but it's elevation range is 300-2500m (pretty huge). Some plants also tend to be a bit different then the others in the group. N. campanulata is listed as a ULL but tend to handle (& like) somewhat cooler temps than the others (iirc). N. argentii has a reputation for being picky & hard-to-please no matter how it's grown. However, this chart is a decent start to know what plants fall into what temp ranges.
 
  • #14
Thanks, I was more talking about different kinds of CP more than different N. but good to know about the elevations too. I've been doing some reading about some N. that I heard were smaller or easy keepers. Beside the differences/exceptions you mentioned, different people seem to have success with different conditions with the same plants too. I did find more or less what I was talking about on ****** Carnivorous Plants AKA Flytraps site.

Yes The N. ampullaria's seems to be one of the universal suggestion for tanks with frogs, but there seems to be a shortage of them this year. I just received a dwarf maxima, more than one told me that maximas are easy keepers & the dwarf part was just what I wanted & needed. I also bought a Cephalotus, which will go in one of the pots imbedded in the rock wall. Should have the cooling system running tomorrow. Will post pix of new plants & cooling system in a couple days. It's been a pretty good week for my tank!
 
  • #15
update photos of CP plants

I did with help from several CP people get a couple bug eaters.


It's a dwarf Maxima. This is it back in may about a month after I got it. When I got it, it only had one open pitcher & one about to open. The thing grows like a weed! Can't wait for it to start to vine.


Same view this week.


As you can see it has one about to open & two new leaves in the works. Also the original tiny pitcher.


The view from the backend on the tank so you can see how many pitches it has grown.

I am so pleased with the choice of the dwarf Maxima, it is obviously happy in a terrarium. I've been feeding new pitches when they get fully open but how often after that do most feed them??


Got this little guy (Cephalotus) a while after the Maxima. No new photo of it but it has grown really well too, 3-4 new pitches on it so far.

Thank You all for all the help learning about these guys!
Jim
 
  • #16
spectacular
 
  • #17
really neat setup. Have you decided whether or not you're going to be doing a cp only tank as well?
 
  • #18
really neat setup. Have you decided whether or not you're going to be doing a cp only tank as well?

I would like to have a cp tank, but finances will not allow it. From what I have learned many/most get really big & a green house would be a better fit. Maybe when my ship comes in?

Thanks
Jim
 
  • #19
Hopefully one day soon. With the care and dedication you spent on this whole project i cant imagine anything else being short of amazing. Great job man.
 
  • #20
I love it!!!!:-O

Ramon:D
 
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