Substrate preference poll

[Vanisher]

I use 100% peatmoss sometimes 50/50% peatmoss-barkmulch just for a little variation! /Johan

 

[unitard311]

Eco-earth all the way

 

[Vanisher]

I love those bright yellow (chartreuse) mushrooms! Not that they taste good or are psychoactive, but I find them very attractive and interesting to watch grow.

Although many keepers feel that coconut coir (e.g., Eco Earth) promotes unwanted mold/fungus growth, I highly recommend it. However, even though I buy it wholesale it is still too expensive when you have as many tarantulas and other inverts as I do. Therefore, I tend to use 100% sphagnum peat moss for most inverts, although my personal collection (almost exclusively arboreals) is kept on a mix of coconut coir and coconut chips. (Many people think that substrate choice is insignificant with arboreals, but I find most of my adults cruise the bottom of the cage at least occasionally). I absolutely never use vermiculite. Not that it doesn't work well - because it does - but because it is so dadgum ugly and unnatural.

I agree with you, vermiculite is really ugly! /Johan

 

[fartkowski]

Earlier in this thread I voted for 100% peat, but I have since switched back to 100% potting soil.
I just like the look of potting soil better.

 

[Psych0]

70% potting soil 30% coco fiber.

 

[nexen]

poll necrophilia!
ecoearth coco fiber for me

 

[Bosing]

Cocopeat for me...

 

[joshuai]

that probably means she doesn't like it! you should try adding some soil or something.

mantids are arboreal and made for twigs and almost never go to the ground anyway

 

[agent lead]

100% eco-earth coco fiber

 

[GartenSpinnen]

I use nothing but coco fiber, but i am honestly thinking of going back to peat, and using vermiculite in my arboreal setups. The coco fiber over time becomes too 'powdery' and i have had issues with fungal growth with occasional batches that i never had before.

With my scorpions i stand by sand/ coco fiber mixtures.

Cheers,
Nate

 

[Endagr8]

My vote goes for "other" - the coconut fiber EcoEarth.

ditto:razz: :razz: :razz:

 

[Flower]

I usually use coconut fiber, but sometimes I mix in some repti-bark or something.

My flatrock is in sand, but my Emperors are also in coconut fiber.

 

[Alex080]

I prefer Eco-Earth overall i hate vermiculite it's ugly for substrate especially when you are trying to make the cage as nice as you can and natural

 

[lmramsey89]

I've always used coconut fiber. I love it, and all my t's do too

 

[billy28]

My vote goes for "other" - the coconut fiber EcoEarth.

Im with him ^ . Peat is good too because you can get ALLOT for very cheap but if you put it in an enclosure wet it will dry like a brick and get clumpy
^

 

[CT9A]

I use 100% peat moss for dry species and vermiculite/peat mix or 100% cocoa fiber for the more humid species. For scorpions I mainly use a 75% sand/25% peat as I mostly have desert species or 100% cocoa fiber for the humid species.

 

[CodeWilster]

coco

The majority of my enclosures for the tropical, humidity loving species and also planted tanks are filled with 100% peat moss. However, my favorite has got to be the coco. It works awesome dry or wet, and at least for me it takes 3x as long to mold and the majority of it never molds as long as lots of spot cleaning attention is given. It looks, smells, and also feels the cleanest in my opinion. The peat and peat mixes are just a lot cheaper, and IMO are more natural than the ground coco.

 

[Sukai94]

My vote goes for "other" - the coconut fiber EcoEarth.

I am with Walter.

 

[D-back]

Another vote for the coco fiber...

 

[ph0bia]

It should depend entirely on the T, surely?

I like a little vermiculite to hold moisture, but it's usually a low percentage of the substrate.

My B.Auratum has a 70/30 peat moss/sand mix as this is close to her natural environment, whereas my P.Chordatus has 80/10/10 peat moss/orchid bark/vermiculite. Then my P.Murinus has 100% peat moss, my H.Albostriatum has 80/20 peat moss/sand... So on... Takes a bit more effort, but it's the Ts happiness that's paramount. I'm not gonna shove any old T in any old tub with any old substrate mix. My babies get the best ^_^

It depends entirely on the T and what their natural environment would be like. I'd never shove my G.Rosea in 100% sand (which I've seen) for example. And certainly I would never use those damn wood-shavings or whatever the hell they are that I see so many pet-stores using. It's just so dry and crispy and really doesn't feel natural.