Your Questions About Gardening

GardenersCardiff answers:

Here is a copy of my care sheet. Never use pebbles, sand or other loose substrates. Never use heat rocks. The simpler the decorations, the easier it will be to keep clean.

Bearded Dragons

Beardies should have at least a 40 gallon breeder tank. Breeder tanks are wider rather than being tall. This allows for more floor space. The larger the tank, the better for your beardie. Mine is in a 75 gallon.

Do not use sand or other loose substrate on the bottom of the tank. The risk of intestinal impaction is very real and very common. Also, loose substrate allows for the quick growth of bacteria and harbors parasites. It is difficult to clean well and usually smells before long. Good choices for substrate are non-adhesive shelf liner, which is rubbery, cheap, easy to clean, and looks great. This is what I use in my lizard tanks. Other choices include reptile carpet and ceramic tile cut-to-fit. Sand is NOT natural! In the wild beardies are not forced to live, eat, and poop all in a confined small space.

You must have a heat lamp and a way to regulate temperatures. The easiest way to provide this is to use a reflector dome with a regular household light bulb. You can change the wattage to increase or decrease heat as needed. Plug the heat lamp into a thermostat (they sell these for reptile lamps) or a dimmer switch. This way the temp can be carefully regulated. Baby beardies need 105F and adults 100F. Use a digital probe thermometer to measure the basking temp. These are sold as indoor/outdoor thermometers in most garden departments. Set it to “outdoor” and place the probe on the basking platform. You cannot use stick on or dial thermometers, as these only measure air temps and not basking temps. They can be off by more than 20F! If the temps are too cold or too hot, you’ll end up with a sick and stressed dragon. Place the heat bulb over one end of the tank so the other end can be the cool end. The beardie can self-regulate his temperature this way by moving from one end to the other. Most beardies spend a good part of their days basking. A basking platform can either be anything the beardie can climb onto to bask. I prefer the artificial logs or bridges, as they are easy to clean.

Beardies must have a UVB bulb! These look like fluorescent bulbs that fit into fixtures made for them. The larger the better. These bulbs must be within 12 inches of the basking spot to be effective. Both heat and UVB bulbs should be on for 12 hours a day. It is best to use timers to accomplish this as they allow for the creation of a natural day/night cycle. Good UVB bulbs are Repti-sun 10.0 or Repti-glo 8.0. These bulbs should be changed every 6 months as they lose potency long before the light gives out.

Feeding a variety of insects is always best. In the wild they will eat up to 50 different types of insects. Good choices include crickets, superworms, phoenix worms, silkworms, hornworms and occasionally wax worms (high in fat). Avoid mealworms as they are too high in chitin (outer shell) and can cause impactions. All insects must be properly “gutloaded” before being used as food. This means providing correct food and water or moisture for them. All insects fed must be no larger than the space between the beardies eyes. If the prey is too large, this can lead to impaction and possible paralysis!

Salads must also be provided. Several greens and vegies should be in each salad. For a complete list of safe recommended vegies, see the Beautiful Dragons website below under the “Nutrition” link.

Provide your beardie with a small bowl of water. Do not use a large bowl as this will raise the humidity too high in the tank, which can lead to upper respiratory problems.

Beardies benefit from bathing and soaking. This not only helps with shedding, it is a good way to keep him hydrated. Simply use a large Rubbermaid container. Fill it to beardie shoulder height with warm water and place the beardie in it. Some beardies love water and others never learn to enjoy a bath. Let him soak for 10-15 minutes. Baby beardies can be soaked 3 times a week (they dehydrate much more quickly) and adults every 1-2 weeks. Daily misting with a squirt bottle is also beneficial.

Beardies should have a stool sample checked by an experienced reptile vet twice a year. They can carry a lot of parasites which can cause loss of appetite, diarrhea, and illness. Some of these parasites, such as coccidia, can never be totally eliminated. Under stress their numbers can rise and cause problems. Your vet can advise you when treatment is needed.

For more info on care, health and feeding, please check out my favorite sites:

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/home.html

http://www.bio.miami.edu/ktosney/file/BD.html

http://www.beardeddragon.org/

http://www.bearded-dragons.com/tips/

GardenersCardiff answers:

Soil acidity is created naturally by a high percentage of organic matter, and artificially by the addition of sulfur or aluminum sulfate. Of the sulfurs, agricultural sulfur is the most convenient form to use, but finer ground or wettable sulfurs are faster acting. Aluminum sulfate may have a toxic effect on plants if used in large amounts. Most “acidifiers” are pure nitrogen, and should be avoided. Neither sulfur nor aluminum sulfate effect permanent changes in soil acidity; retreatments must be made from time to time.

To be certain that your soil is the proper pH for blueberries (4.2 to 5.2), test it with an inexpensive soil kit bought from a garden center or by taking a sample to your County Extension Agent. Call first to obtain instructions on collecting the sample and the amount of the fee for the test.

If the pH is too high, an area large enough to support the entire root system of the plant at mature size will require amending, so the first piece of information you will need–how large an area to amend–will depend on the plants you select.

Native wild blueberries are low, spread slowly to form patches, and produce very small, dark blue berries with quintessential blueberry flavor. Hybrid blueberries have been developed for commercial and home growers in the native, northern range of blueberries, and far to the south of their natural range, and come in several sizes. Tree and orchard nurseries can provide guidance on which would be most likely to succeed in your area, whether you will need only one type or a pollinator, and on the usual mature size of the plant(s) you select.

Shrubs, like trees, often make the same amount of subterranean growth as they do of above-ground growth, so if your choice(s) can be expected to reach (for example) 3 feet wide at maturity, they will require at least an area of amended soil that is 3 feet in diameter–and I would recommend that you increase that to 4 feet–so that your plants will always grow in soil of the proper pH.

Next, calculate how much sulfur to add to your soil at its present pH to lower its pH to 4.7 (halfway between 4.2 and 5.2), basing the total amount you’ll need per plant on the diameter of its permanent, mature rootball to a depth of at least half of its anticipated mature height. “Tree Maintenance” by P. P. Pirone, contains a chart of the calculations. (The book has been the Bible of tree care for more than 60 years; when my 6th edition copy was published in 1988, Mr. Pirone was Plant Pathologist Emeritus at the New York Botanical Garden. It is available at most public libraries. Make a copy of the chart so you’ll have it for future reference.)

If you’re planting more than one or two blueberry bushes, you might want to hire someone to use something more muscular than a garden tiller to turn the soil, break it up, then incorporate the sulfur into an area sufficient to accommodate all the plants, plus room to move among them to harvest your crop.

For a single plant or a few plants, individual holes might be easier. Dig straight-sided, flat bottomed holes, removing most of the soil onto the adjacent surface of your property. Break it up to a fine consistency, mixing what was on top thoroughly with what was on the bottom. (The resultant mix is actually what you should have tested for pH, since the pH of surface soil can differ quite markedly from that of soil directly beneath it at a depth of a foot or so.)

Then blend the requisite amount of sulphur thoroughly into the soil, until it is no longer visible as a separate entity. (I would also add an appropriate quantity of superphosphate or triple superphosphate and bone meal, according to the instructions on the packages–but then, I don’t plant anything without adding them. The former improves root development, stem strenghth, and flowering/fruiting, the latter is a good, gentle, slow-release fertilizer.)

You are now ready to plant!

Once planted your blueberries should immediately be mulched with 2 to 4 inches of mulch to protect the soil you just made so fine and light from erosion and summer baking or winter heaving, to help retain soil moisture, and to keep the plants’ roots cool. If you use a quickly-degrading organic mulch, such as hay, straw, grass clippings, the weeds and trimmings from vegetable and flower gardens, shredded (autumn) tree leaves, or shredded deadfall from trees and shrubs, the soil’s pH will remain stable longer than if you use non-organic material such as gravel or more slowly degradable material such as pine bark mulch.

Remember to keep checking pH annually, and work the correct amount of sulfur into the top 2 to 4 inches of soil if a correcion is needed, being careful of the plants’ roots.

Be sure to plant in a sunny location.

Success and good eating to you!

GardenersCardiff answers:

Real plants are not recommended…not because there are no safe plants for them to eat, but rather it won’t take long for a beardie to totally demolish any plant in the tank. You are better off keeping the tank simple and easy to clean. Here are some of my tips for care:

Bearded Dragons

Beardies should have at least a 40 gallon breeder tank. Breeder tanks are wider rather than being tall. This allows for more floor space. The larger the tank, the better for your beardie. Mine is in a 75 gallon.

Do not use sand or other loose substrate on the bottom of the tank. The risk of intestinal impaction is very real and very common. Also, loose substrate allows for the quick growth of bacteria and harbors parasites. It is difficult to clean well and usually smells before long. Good choices for substrate are non-adhesive shelf liner, which is rubbery, cheap, easy to clean, and looks great. This is what I use in my lizard tanks. Other choices include reptile carpet and ceramic tile cut-to-fit. Sand is NOT natural! In the wild beardies are not forced to live, eat, and poop all in a confined small space.

You must have a heat lamp and a way to regulate temperatures. The easiest way to provide this is to use a reflector dome with a regular household light bulb. You can change the wattage to increase or decrease heat as needed. Plug the heat lamp into a thermostat (they sell these for reptile lamps) or a dimmer switch. This way the temp can be carefully regulated. Baby beardies need 105F and adults 100F. Use a digital probe thermometer to measure the basking temp. These are sold as indoor/outdoor thermometers in most garden departments. Set it to “outdoor” and place the probe on the basking platform. You cannot use stick on or dial thermometers, as these only measure air temps and not basking temps. They can be off by more than 20F! If the temps are too cold or too hot, you’ll end up with a sick and stressed dragon. Place the heat bulb over one end of the tank so the other end can be the cool end. The beardie can self-regulate his temperature this way by moving from one end to the other. Most beardies spend a good part of their days basking. A basking platform can either be anything the beardie can climb onto to bask. I prefer the artificial logs or bridges, as they are easy to clean.

Beardies must have a UVB bulb! These look like fluorescent bulbs that fit into fixtures made for them. The larger the better. These bulbs must be within 12 inches of the basking spot to be effective. Both heat and UVB bulbs should be on for 12 hours a day. It is best to use timers to accomplish this as they allow for the creation of a natural day/night cycle. Good UVB bulbs are Repti-sun 10.0 or Repti-glo 8.0. These bulbs should be changed every 6 months as they lose potency long before the light gives out.

Feeding a variety of insects is always best. In the wild they will eat up to 50 different types of insects. Good choices include crickets, superworms, phoenix worms, silkworms, hornworms and occasionally wax worms (high in fat). Avoid mealworms as they are too high in chitin (outer shell) and can cause impactions. All insects must be properly “gutloaded” before being used as food. This means providing correct food and water or moisture for them. All insects fed must be no larger than the space between the beardies eyes. If the prey is too large, this can lead to impaction and possible paralysis!

Salads must also be provided. Several greens and vegies should be in each salad. For a complete list of safe recommended vegies, see the Beautiful Dragons website below under the “Nutrition” link.

Provide your beardie with a small bowl of water. Do not use a large bowl as this will raise the humidity too high in the tank, which can lead to upper respiratory problems.

Beardies benefit from bathing and soaking. This not only helps with shedding, it is a good way to keep him hydrated. Simply use a large Rubbermaid container. Fill it to beardie shoulder height with warm water and place the beardie in it. Some beardies love water and others never learn to enjoy a bath. Let him soak for 10-15 minutes. Baby beardies can be soaked 3 times a week (they dehydrate much more quickly) and adults every 1-2 weeks. Daily misting with a squirt bottle is also beneficial.

Beardies should have a stool sample checked by an experienced reptile vet twice a year. They can carry a lot of parasites which can cause loss of appetite, diarrhea, and illness. Some of these parasites, such as coccidia, can never be totally eliminated. Under stress their numbers can rise and cause problems. Your vet can advise you when treatment is needed.

For more info on care, health and feeding, please check out my favorite sites:

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.co…

Http://www.bio.miami.edu/ktosney/file/BD…

Http://www.beardeddragon.org/

http://www.bearded-dragons.com/tips/

Oh and Jesse. Don’t get your hopes up too high. Name him according to his features and personality. It’ll be hard to pick a name that YOU like.