What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Neps for a Gecko Terrarium

Wire Man

Sphagnum Guru
I'm going to be redoing my Madagascar giant day gecko's terrarium soon. It's 55 gallons, gets misted daily. Are there any Nepenthes that would do well in a lowland terrarium of this size with a foot long lizard? Any other carnivores?
 
Nepenthes belii and gracilis seem to be two good contenders. They're can both be kept small and thus are unlikely to quickly outgrow your tank, with pitchers too small to pose a threat to the geckos :p

I've seen people grow ampullaria in large dartfrog set ups, though I would be worried about potential frog death. Amp can get fairly large as well. Doesn't seem worth it?

If you've got a water feature, lowland bladderworts / genlisea would be fun. Some Drosera would go nuts. D. burmanii likes it warm and wet and will repeatedly set seed in the tank.
 
Is the tank going to be longways or on its end?
 
This is a very large gecko, so I think I'd be able to grow ampullaria, as long as it doesn't get more than a foot wide. How would bellii handle being occasionally being climbed on by a gecko?

I might do a water feature just to have a colony of dews and utrics. Would the water have to be circulating, or could I just use an airstone?

The tank is horizontal.
 
A plant that has proven itself to be indestructible in my care is N. mirabilis x bicalcarata. It grows big, tubby, dark purple pitchers. I just had to hack mine back because the new growth was attacked by scale, and not a week and a half later, every node on the vine has activated. All this growth with only half a leaf on the vine.
It just won't die.
 
When you get it all set up, I'll donate one of my N. belii to you. amps would also do good in there.
 
Awesome! That's one less expense to add to the list. I'll be redoing it after this semester.

---------- Post added at 03:06 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:25 AM ----------

This would only make sense. How wide does N. madagascarensis get? I could attempt a biotope with this, even though the gecko is 12 years old.

I just realized something. If I just plant one N. bellii, some sundews, and terrestrial Utrics this setup is going to look very bare. I have some epiphytic orchids and a Tillandsia I could mount on driftwood to fill in some upper areas, but what other plants would act as filler and not out compete the CPs? I'm think some rabbit's foot fern would work, maybe my Paphiopedilums.
 
Last edited:
It's getting close to rescape time! I'm compiling a list of plants to use and would like some feedback.

Here's how I'm planning to set it up; It's going to be a sloped substrate, being higher on the right and lower on the left, ending in a shallow water feature (possibly a small filter to keep the water moving and free of debris). I'll place egg crate on the right side, stacking it to 2-3 layers on the far right. The substrate will be divided according to soil requirements; peat and sand at the lowest point for the Drosera and Utricularia, peat and sand and bark in the middle, and bark, perlite, charcoal, and LFS on the right. The Neps will be in pots with medium piled around them. My main question with this setup is how will I get enough light to grow Drosera burmannii in the lowest part?

Here's the list of plants that I have written up;

CPs
-Nepenthes bellii
-Nepenthes gracilis
-Drosera burmannii
-Utricularia graminifolia

Orchids
-Cattleya hybrid
-Tolumnia hybrid
-Paphiopedilum "Napa Valley"?
-Paphiopedilum "Raisin Pie"?
-Grosourdya appendiculata
-Bulbophyllum putidum

Filler Plants
-Maranta sp.
-Fittonia verschaffeltii
-Gynura aurantiaca
-Polypodium aureum
-Philodendron "Lemon Lime"
-Pellaea (lemon button fern)
-Davallia trichomanoides (rabbit's foot fern)
-Ficus repens
-Tillandsia bulbuosa "Guatemala"

I'm not going to use all of these plants, that would be too much. There will be driftwood and cut bamboo stakes to add texture and give the Nepenthes something to grab onto once the start vining. The plants that can be grown epiphytically will be, freeing up some ground space.

So, any suggestions?
 
Back
Top