# Best and safest soil for frog tank ?



## sketchin (May 21, 2013)

Title says it all, i'm making a live planted FBT tank now i'm wondering what the best soil to use would be, i will be using mosses also on top but i want something which is safe but if possible beneficial to the plants.


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## Reptilia Ossett (Sep 24, 2011)

sketchin said:


> Title says it all, i'm making a live planted FBT tank now i'm wondering what the best soil to use would be, i will be using mosses also on top but i want something which is safe but if possible beneficial to the plants.


Sketchin we use Coco Coir Fibre Brick 650g by Monkfield is a natural 100% organic substrate for all reptiles and amphibians.It is non toxic, odorless and completely harmless if ingested. As a dry substrate it is perfect for desert terrarium settings. Wet it down and it is now a tropical dwelling substrate. It can be purchased from ourselves, details on the signature below


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## sketchin (May 21, 2013)

Cheer dude i wasn't sure if it'd be ok for tropical plants glad it is.


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## deadsea60 (Apr 20, 2011)

For best plant growth use a mix of peat, sphagnum moss, fine orchid bark and tree fern finer, (although tree fern finer is both expensive and hard to find so I just miss it out). The tree fern finer is full of nutrients so is really the most important part but I get good growth without it. The orchid bark is important as it improves the drainage ability of the soil so the substrate doesn't become saturated (used with a false bottom).
James


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## ronnyjodes (Apr 29, 2011)

Go for a mix. Coco fibre on it's own holds a LOT of water. I mix it in a similar way to James above with peat, a mixture of mosses, bark and leaf litter. Mixing your own will save you a lot of faff in the future. Make sure you also have a couple of centimetre deep drainage layer under your substrate.


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## Reptilia Ossett (Sep 24, 2011)

I agree with the above 2 very good comments, I should of been more specific with our methods. We use hydro clay balls on the bottom of the tank, where the land area is to be located, depth of hydro clay balls is dependent on the final water level, a layer of weed suppressor material is then placed on top of the hydro clay balls, the soil mix is then placed on top of the weed suppressor, this is a mix of eco earth and peat, at times we mix aquarium gavel with the soil to assist drainage. The top layer is is of personal choice to mimic the individuals natural habitat, many substrates can be utilized including, Orchid Bark, Bun Moss, Flat Moss, Leaves of ground covering foliage. This is a method that we use and found through trial and test to be a practical method, although there is other methods that people have found to work for them just as well.


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## sketchin (May 21, 2013)

Cheers for the advice guys, i'm trying to get all the information i need and get everything done properly and well. 

Still thinking about how im going to separate the water from the land, and by that i don't mean drainage or anything but the actually water side from the land. 

At first i thought about making a wall with expanding foam then covering it with silicon and coco fiber to make it look a bit more natural, but i found expanding foam annoying to work with. I did thinking about a piece of glass siliconed in place but i'd like to have a curved wall. Acrylic is terrible for gluing to anything but acrylic. Anyone got any ideas?


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## Reptilia Ossett (Sep 24, 2011)

You could use a length of natural Cork Bark fixed in place using Aquatic Sealant, you could also use this sealant to fill in any gaps between the cork and the glass. Leave the sealant to dry ( cure ) for around a week and then you can introduce the water. The Cork Bark will give a natural look to the barrier and it will compliment the land area, it's rough texture also gives amphibians good foot hold to leave the water.


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## sketchin (May 21, 2013)

Reptilia Ossett said:


> You could use a length of natural Cork Bark fixed in place using Aquatic Sealant, you could also use this sealant to fill in any gaps between the cork and the glass. Leave the sealant to dry ( cure ) for around a week and then you can introduce the water. The Cork Bark will give a natural look to the barrier and it will compliment the land area, it's rough texture also gives amphibians good foot hold to leave the water.


That's a method i hadn't thought of thanks  only problem is finding the right shaped piece i'll be keeping my eyes open.

Still whoever reads this and has an idea please say


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## soundstounite (Sep 6, 2009)

Mate I don't keep fire bellied,just darts,the ecoearth has been covered and answered before I got there,no way would I go there:lol2:Anyway although I use pretty much organic subs,ie free draining stuff,orchid bark twigs LL bit 'o' peat maybe,for me I'm still not happy. Look our results are cool I don't have problems,a is realistically beyond ok ok I guess.But what's missing is nature replication,ie a mineral based sub,under the organic stuff. For me there is much to be pondered on here,ya asked for more,that's where I think it is,but untried as of yet by this guy.

Stu


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## deadsea60 (Apr 20, 2011)

If your willing to splash out tree fern fibre is supposed to do wonders for plant growth


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## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

I'm planning on a mix of soil for my new dart frog tank (currently in the build stage - What I have at the moment is cocosoil, peat, sphagnum moss, orchid bark, granulated tree fern root and granulated cork, topped off with oak leaves as I want the tank to be really lush and heavily planted), most of the stuff is easy to find, but you can pick the tree fern root up from dartfrog, but like someone else mentioned, it's not cheap sadly.


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## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

** Also in terms of doing a land / pool gradient, have you thought about doing a piece of land sloping into the water rather than having a solid edge as it were? Unsure whether this would be any easier, but I'm sure I've seen it done elsewhere... 

Something like this?







It may make it easier for your frogs to get in and out too, or allow them to sit half submerged?


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## berksmike (Jan 2, 2008)

I generally use a mix of coco-fibre, orchid bark and peat in my setups.
One thing I would add tho is leave as much of the soil covered as possible (You mentioned using moss) otherwise your water will be mucky all the time from the toads going in and out the water.
FBTs were the first amphibians I kept and foolishly left some areas of bare substrate - i spent goodness knows how much time cleaning out the water area and unblocking the filter!


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