Favorite indoor plant for chameleons

[rachelk]

When I got my Ficus tree, it looked like a Ficus Bush. I did the Bonzai thing on it and thined it out. It looks more like a tree now, plenty of room for my juvinile Veiled to move in, yet enough coverage for him to hide. I think it might have helped the Tree. It is sprouting new growth everywhere. I am hopeing by doing the Bonzai thing I can maintain the highth of the plant in the enclosure and make its gerth grow? Anyone else do this with their trees and whats the out come?

Frank

what do you mean by the bonzai thing?

 

[blackbetty]

Depends on the kind of Cham. For large chams, I like Hibiscus or Large scheffleras. For my Pygmys I use this weird plant. I dont recall the name of it but its tall with little leaves straight off. Feels more like a succulent but its perfect for them to climb. Dense, but strong with lots of "branches" as the leaves resemble. I put one in each corner. Ferns and Pothos are good too.

 

[blackbetty]

what do you mean by the bonzai thing?

I think he just means he probably thins it out but cutting chunks out of it to make it more dense for the cham to hide in and move through.

 

[susurrus]

Bonzai is trimming the roots of a plant to artificially stunt its growth.

Blackbetty are you talking about a bromeliad?

 

[Smokey]

i got ficus pothos n hibiscus in my cages togother

 

[writh]

I have 2 ficus trees and one pothos plant

 

[xanthoman]

not on the poll and not on many safe lists , my personal preference so far is coffee, really durable, stong woody stalks , lucious well hydrated leaves , uses lots of water (useful if you can incorporate your plant substrate into the drainage system) but i have seen some lists where coffee was on the safe list with a notation that coffee is toxic to chams , however i think they are referring to the beans which dont develop for about 10 years, so i guess it would depend on your cham , i would consider plants for non plant eaters (like jackson's), that i wouldnt consider for plant eaters (jacksons rarely eat plants, and if it doesnt apply to jackson's, i usually dont pay any attn) since coffee wasnt on the list , i voted hibiscus./ one final note, jackson's thrive in the coffee plantations of hawaii

 

[tkilgour]

It's really hard for me to choose a specific one. I have really good luck with schefflera, pothos will grow without even any soil, but my favorite is the ficus alii. At the same time, i hate the ficus benjamina, so if I vote for ficus, people will assume benjamina because it is the most common. I can't decide.

I have to agree pothos and schefflera grow excellent, they grow in rocks. I like ficus too however.

 

[BrandonG]

I have grown very fond of the Gold Capella Schefflera. Excellent coverage!

 

[jessica]

I have both a ficus and schefflera in my panthers cage and he likes them both, but my vote has to be for ficus!!!!!!

 

[Lizard Lady]

I also prefer The Ficus but Im gonna give a Hibuscus plant; that I have been growing and grooming into a Tree a try this year.

 

[DGray]

Scheffs

Its an old thread, but a good one so I'll vote:

I'm a plant guy, and I can see the value and beauty of each of the choices, so I like them all, but I voted for dwarf scheffs for their sturdy growth and how easy they are to please. I like all the different varieties that are being introduced, from really bright yellow variegated ones to little dwarfs. Scheffs have fewer episodes of mass leaf-drop compared with some _Ficus_.

Of course, pothos are EASIER to please, but strike me as a background plant There is a new dwarf version of the white variegated type called "N'Joy"; might be good for smaller cages, or where the regular ones grow too fast.

 

[DGray]

responses

i have great luck with them all, does anyone use jasmine? they flower everytime you trim them, good strong bark stems. give it a try, when they flower the whole apartment smells great!
drew

While _Jasminum_ species are sweet smelling, and the blossoms are used to scent and flavor teas, I don't think you would want them in a cage with a plant-eating species; the whole family has a variety of compounds that are toxic, although I'm gong to have to do a little research to find a reference. They're closely related to privets _Ligustrum_, and lilacs _Syringa_.

"Night-blooming Jasmine" is _Cestrum nocturnum_, its in the Solanum family, and is closely related to dangerous plants like nighshade, henbane, and jimson weed. I would not use any _Cestrum_ near any kind of animal enclosure. Toxic compounds include solanines, atropines, scopolomines, and others.

The plant list at http://webhome.idirect.com/~chameleon/owners/chapter2-sub5.html which may have come from LLL Reptile, has a couple of obvious toxic plants listed ( Carissa, ferns ) and a couple of typos ( my assumuption ) on scientific names. I think it should be disregarded.

Melissa Kaplan's site is well-thought out and researched. As least her plant lists have references of actual veterinary cases.

what about orchid, really?
(i open a new thread but i got a mixed feeling toward them. some say it's poisonous and some say it's not//)
anyone actually have ever used an orchid be4?
if you have, how do you clean them from pesticides if you cannot make the flower wet?
or another one is camellia sinensis?
These things are everywhere in nursery right now..

All orchids should be considered poisonous to reptiles, mammals and birds. Also, they are grown with major dosings of pesticides and fungicides.

_Camellia_ species might be safe, but they don't really grow very well as houseplants. Black tea comes from a _Camellia_.

K question on the Crotons.... here is a link that say if peirced it leakes white sap and also says it's an irritant? so are they safe if a cham takes a bite out of it? I love these and i am very interested in getting one for the new cage so if anyone knows please post.

_Codiaeum_ or crotons are a little confusing; some are eaten as a leafy vegetable, some are considered poisonous. Of the varieties I've eaten, the ones that have thin leaves that are almost all bright yellow are the mildest. Greenhouse-grown houseplants should be washed well to try to remove pesticides and fungicides.

not on the poll and not on many safe lists , my personal preference so far is coffee, ...
... i voted hibiscus./ one final note, jackson's thrive in the coffee plantations of hawaii

I like the idea of coffee trees too.

 

[DJ Richey Rich]

Im Loving the Ficus But Gucci loves her free range Madrone tree the best "did my research madrone is a very healthy tree besides the wood is what bird perches are made from"

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

my cham loves eating ficus leaves, but ficus always die for me within a month or two

 

[DJ Richey Rich]

my cham loves eating ficus leaves, but ficus always die for me within a month or two

ficuses are very temperature tempermental

 

[summoner12]

my cham loves eating ficus leaves, but ficus always die for me within a month or two

Try putting a 6500K lamp on the cage. You can buy them in CFL form or linear tube. This will help keep it alive. I used to kill all my plants until I started using supplemental lighting.

 

[VeiledGirl]

sorry for being late for the party.

Hibiscus work well personally
If you have proper lighting in the cage they'll work VERY WELL.

I've been playing around with another species (not listed)
it's working out quit nicely too.

Re: Jasmine species.
The family of plants are on BOTH the toxic and non-toxic plants lists
in general
They are not going to be safe for your animals to consume.
the atropine alkaloids are there to defend against nibbling.
They work well and can cause death.

But the safest one is Jasminum sambac (Maid of Orleans)
I've had a few of these and can attest to their fragrance.
http://www.logees.com/prodinfo.asp?number=R1390-2

while I wouldn't eat handfuls of the leaves or flowers
I would say it's the safest of the bunch (ymmv) with a history of use in teas.
But if your animal gets sick and dies (don't come running to blame me).

Toxicity aside, The downside is that the stems aren't very strong
nor is it a aggressive climber nor a fast grower
you'll have to cycle two or three in and outside of cage
for a lush plant.

What light bulbs do you need exactly for the hibiscus (tube? wattage)? Does the light produce excess heat to the cage? What type of hibiscus works best?

 

[summoner12]

What light bulbs do you need exactly for the hibiscus (tube? wattage)? Does the light produce excess heat to the cage? What type of hibiscus works best?

I use 6500K color temp lamps. My hibiscus grow very well in the cages with the chams..... as long as a certain female veiled doesn't eat every leaf before more can grow back

 

[kicsylany]

Hi, does anyone has any experience with Magnolia tree??? at the moment all of the garden center is full with them and they just beautiful (not too cheap lol) but I'm not sure is it safe for chamaleons?