Neat Solution to the Greenhouse Weeding Problem

[Motherlode Chameleon]

Some of the maintenance that is routine for keeping a green house is weeding. If not done weeds can choke the circulation of air from swamp coolers in the summer and can just become a nuisance. All my cages are elevated in my green house and the floor is unoccupied for the most part. As their is just mostly wild mint and some grasses I have been considering buying a pair or two pairs of red footed tortoises (a tropical species) to keep the weeds down. I have mentioned this with a couple other tortoise keepers and think the redfoots are perfect for my greenhouse. Once the green house is moved to the new house and the metal halide is mounted on the greenhouses ceiling I'm going to buy a captive bred pair and see what kind of job the are capable of.

 

[Peter]

A tropical greenhouse is certainly the ideal environment for this type of tortoise, they will thrive in such a setup. You may find though that they aren't brilliant at keeping the weeds down. I find Redfoots are less inclined to graze on weeds. It is most definately worth a go though, they will eat some and make your life a bit easier!

 

[Syn]

Not a redfoot, but, the two Sulcata we had kept everything but the weeds down!
Once they ate all of our 3 foot crab grass (the only thing that grows in Arizona), then they finally decided to go for the weeds.

 

[summoner12]

Not a redfoot, but, the two Sulcata we had kept everything but the weeds down!
Once they ate all of our 3 foot crab grass (the only thing that grows in Arizona), then they finally decided to go for the weeds.

Don't you eat the good stuff on your plate before you eat your veggies?

"If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding. How can you
have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?"

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

Actually what is mostly growing in the my green house is wild mint with minimal grass type weeds. I hope the redfoots have got an appetite for mint.

Any way just planning for what should be done when the greenhouse is finally moved to the new house and weeds start becoming a problem again (if the mint shows up again).

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

Have you guys got any other consideration for tropical tortises that would eat weeds. I was also considering Aldabra tortioses.

 

[ciafardo 4]

This would be a good question for Tyler Stewart at Blue beast

 

[Peter]

Aldabrans wouldn't really be suitable in a tropical environment.

Most other tropical tortoises have a similar attitude to weeds as Redfoots, though I suspect any tortoise would be quite unwilling to eat mint anyway. I find the smell puts them off such things.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

I'm certain there's going to be some kind of plant growth at the new location as to what kind of growth I could not say yet.

I'm going ahead with the redfoots, however, if their are other worthy species I'm going to consider buying another captive bred pair.

I'm up scaling the green house from 12 foot by 12 foot up to 12 foot by 18 foot floor. I think two pairs are going to have the best shot a controlling the vegetation growth on the greenhouse floor than just one pair.

 

[Peter]

I would certainly think it was worth a try with the redfoots, it could be a great success.

I would actually add two further females if you did go on to get more after the originals, rather than another male/female pair.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

I'm capable of considering that (add two further females). Just with the problem of egg binding in reptiles I normally go male first.

One pair of Redfoots are a certainty. However since I up scaling the greenhouse from 4 meter by 4 meter floor to a 6 meter by 4 meter floor I'm not seeing one pair manage weeds for that entire area. Hence the consideration of a second pair (possibly another species) or extra females.

 

[jojackson]

Never having been fortunate enough to own a tortoise, I've never looked into the natural diets of any particular species, but my curiosity is peaked.
Wouldnt most species graze on relatively course dry vegetation? and wouldnt species/types of vegetation be pretty select given diffrent habitats?
If this is the case, wouldnt constant grazing on rich green grasses and unknown*
weeds be risky to their health?

*birds spread weeds/seeds, not all of them are non toxic/native

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

For my understanding and this project is still in the developmental stages, Redfoots tortoises come from the Amazon Basin and don't come across dry vegetation like desert tortoises as they live in tropical rain forest areas.

I have asked a couple sources and the local grasses that would become weeds in the greenhouse here in my area and are OK for the tortoises to graze on (mostly Bermuda grass and mint). Plus I would be feeding them other foods for nutritional purposes. One good point though is I have got some house plants that are semi toxic and I would have to put them on the green house shelving racks to keep them out of reach from the tortoises or remove them completely.

 

[jojackson]

Oh It occured to me they arnt all desert species but with birds spreading a variety of weeds/seeds from elsewhere, I wondered.
Then again I suppose any tortoise kept outside faces the same possibility right.
They must be relatively 'digestive hardy', no?
Its just ive heard of folk having issues like this with herbivorous lizards.
Just a thought.
Ive always been wowed by tortoises, I remember seeing tortoises in books/illustrations as a kid and always wanting one, and being very dissapointed to discover we didnt have any LOL.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

I think your confusing a shade house for a green house. I have heard a lot of people call shade houses (has a black shade cloth over it) a green house when they are not green houses at all. Shade houses are a lot more exposed to the elements such as outside temperatures, birds and their seeds they disburse, and native predators. A green house normally is covered by a layer of opaque hard or soft plastic and has its own unique temperatures (not the same as outside temperatures), and not exposed to predators or birds. Birds have not got access to the inside of my green house to disperse seeds of toxic plants and would not be an issue for foraging tortoises.

 

[jojackson]

Ah yes, your right, I was too! Ive seen 'green houses' made of glass even.
I guess my biggest fear then would be rodents. Be sure to keep stored seeds in sealed containers.
I'll bet it works out fine. I've read stories of folk having torts living in their greenhouse.
Please post some pics?

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

Love to post some pictures however its going to be a while.

 

[Pure]

Why not just use chemical weed killer. And not that roundup crap. Go to a "real" nursery and you can find real weed killer that actually works. It's in a concentrate that you mix with water. I tend to make it pretty strong because I like it to work fast. But be very careful with it. The active ingredient is one of the 3 main chemicals used in nerve gas or something like that, so it's def not something you want to play with. Around animals I would poor it on the roots of what ever you are trying to kill. I wouldn't risk spraying it.

 

[jojackson]

I wouldnt risk that at all Pure, The tortoise dosent know its not suppose to munch poisoned plants.
Personally I would think, digging out the topsoil, laying weedmat and gravel ontop would pretty much Kibosh the weed problem, though the tortoise wouldnt like it.

 

[QuioteCham]

my parents have 2 sulcata and a CA desert tort and none of them will even think about touching the bountiful tons of wild mint in their backyard. But they eat everything else!