RedFoot Enclosure Update

[theguy67]

I love it! Thanks for the tip -- a dry creek would definitely be the way I would go if I ever put one in.

No problem. One thing I had to consider was if it was going to be beneficial. I was worried I would be taking up too much land that would become avoided and not used. BUT, beyond the aesthetics, the creek provides the obvious source of water of varying depths and movements. Sometimes the tortoises like to lay in the faster moving water, and others they will take a dip into the deeper end of the pond. Having it cut the habitat in half forces them to become in contact with water more frequently, which helps to stimulate natural soaking, at least I believe.. If it were located in one corner of the enclosure, the water would be less accessible.

A more general benefit would be acting as a sight barrier. I have started to build up the land on both sides to create more of a creek appearance. It may not be noticeable, but if one were to get close to the ground, it becomes clear that the tortoises can not see the other side of the pen due to the landscaping provided by the creek. I'm sure the same could be obtained by simply creating a hill, but its more interesting for both humans and tortoises.It gives them privacy from others, and may make the enclosure "appear" larger. I often see them traveling up and down stream like a highway, always inspecting, searching for new things like food items.

In general, with and without water, it seems to stimulate different behaviors that may resemble those that would be exhibited in the wild.

 

[Oxalis]

No problem. One thing I had to consider was if it was going to be beneficial. I was worried I would be taking up too much land that would become avoided and not used. BUT, beyond the aesthetics, the creek provides the obvious source of water of varying depths and movements. Sometimes the tortoises like to lay in the faster moving water, and others they will take a dip into the deeper end of the pond. Having it cut the habitat in half forces them to become in contact with water more frequently, which helps to stimulate natural soaking, at least I believe.. If it were located in one corner of the enclosure, the water would be less accessible.

A more general benefit would be acting as a sight barrier. I have started to build up the land on both sides to create more of a creek appearance. It may not be noticeable, but if one were to get close to the ground, it becomes clear that the tortoises can not see the other side of the pen due to the landscaping provided by the creek. I'm sure the same could be obtained by simply creating a hill, but its more interesting for both humans and tortoises.It gives them privacy from others, and may make the enclosure "appear" larger. I often see them traveling up and down stream like a highway, always inspecting, searching for new things like food items.

In general, with and without water, it seems to stimulate different behaviors that may resemble those that would be exhibited in the wild.

Excellent. I agree about cutting the land space in half. It might make the tortoise think that the delicious dandelion is on the other side of this creek, so I'll have to cross the water to get it! This is a good solution for the torts, like mine, who don't care much for the water at all, and I always worry about him getting dehydrated. But as part of the habitat, it becomes more natural and like the wild to him; and then if he becomes more used to being in the water, he'll think it's because it was his idea and not mine. Silly vindictive tortoise! Great stuff! Thanks for sharing!!

 

[theguy67]

Candled the eggs today and noticed a red/orange "growth" in the bottom the 4 of 5 remaining eggs. Hopefully this is a good sign.

 

[Pearly]

Candled the eggs today and noticed a red/orange "growth" in the bottom the 4 of 5 remaining eggs. Hopefully this is a good sign.


View attachment 178310

Good luck with that

 

[theguy67]

Good luck with that

Thanks. I'm actually not really sure what to look for. Tortoise eggs seem more mysterious to me than other reptiles. The orange spot is the yolk of course, but it wasn't as prominent as it was last week.

 

[theguy67]

One from today.

 

[Oxalis]

One from today.

View attachment 179626

Awww, I love it!

 

[theguy67]

So there's been a few changes.


It appears one of 3 of the pomegranate trees is finally bearing fruit. Sometime this year I need to remove some trunks, so the plants can focus their efforts on only a few strong trunks rather than a bunch of suckers. Last year all the flowers fell off, and that appears to be the case this year, BUT 4 have remained on this branch.



The fig tree has no problem producing, just taking longer to ripen this year.


Planted 2 climbing roses.



I have also planted some raspberry plants, seen in the cage above.
1 of 3 of my new Banana trees. I am not giving up on including these in my enclosure. The benefits are too high to pass them up. The tortoises love the leaves, and they provide shade with a nice tropical touch. I have had little luck with banana trees in the past. Either they can't acclimate in the hot summer, or we lose them in the winter. I'm going to dig them up this year and see how they do stored indoors for the harsh winter months. The one pictured above is Musa Orinoco.
My bamboo is hanging in there. I probably should have planted it in early spring, however, I am optimistic that it will acclimate well.

 

[Eatapeach]

This was an inctedible read..
Such an amazing enclosure!!

 

[John Franzwa]

So cool

 

[Oxalis]

So there's been a few changes.

View attachment 182149
It appears one of 3 of the pomegranate trees is finally bearing fruit. Sometime this year I need to remove some trunks, so the plants can focus their efforts on only a few strong trunks rather than a bunch of suckers. Last year all the flowers fell off, and that appears to be the case this year, BUT 4 have remained on this branch.

View attachment 182150 View attachment 182151

The fig tree has no problem producing, just taking longer to ripen this year.
View attachment 182152

Planted 2 climbing roses.

View attachment 182154 View attachment 182155

I have also planted some raspberry plants, seen in the cage above. View attachment 182157
1 of 3 of my new Banana trees. I am not giving up on including these in my enclosure. The benefits are too high to pass them up. The tortoises love the leaves, and they provide shade with a nice tropical touch. I have had little luck with banana trees in the past. Either they can't acclimate in the hot summer, or we lose them in the winter. I'm going to dig them up this year and see how they do stored indoors for the harsh winter months. The one pictured above is Musa Orinoco. View attachment 182158
My bamboo is hanging in there. I probably should have planted it in early spring, however, I am optimistic that it will acclimate well.


View attachment 182156

Awesome! We got a good amount of raspberries this summer from our plants, although my tort didn't care for them! He must not be my son after all! XD I have not yet tried a banana tree but it would be very interesting to try a cold hardy one here in Michigan. I love tropical plants like that, so maybe I'll just have to move to Key West or somewhere fun. Rabbits have nibbled away at the branches of our rose plants, so good choice in covering yours with netting! We should really start doing that too, especially over the winter when they eat everything in sight. Very awesome that you have pom trees; I love their juice. I have been considering a fig tree as well; your photos really make me want to get out in the garden! Great job out there; those are some spoiled torts!

 

[theguy67]

Awesome! We got a good amount of raspberries this summer from our plants, although my tort didn't care for them! He must not be my son after all! XD I have not yet tried a banana tree but it would be very interesting to try a cold hardy one here in Michigan. I love tropical plants like that, so maybe I'll just have to move to Key West or somewhere fun. Rabbits have nibbled away at the branches of our rose plants, so good choice in covering yours with netting! We should really start doing that too, especially over the winter when they eat everything in sight. Very awesome that you have pom trees; I love their juice. I have been considering a fig tree as well; your photos really make me want to get out in the garden! Great job out there; those are some spoiled torts!

Well I wanted to make the pen beneficial for tortoises and humans, so the fruit bearing plants are for humans primarily. There's enough that either falls, or isn't used that the tortoises get their share. Nobody in my house likes figs, so they get most of them anyway.

The only thing I know about Michigan gardening is that it gets super cold in the winter lol.

 

[Oxalis]

Well I wanted to make the pen beneficial for tortoises and humans, so the fruit bearing plants are for humans primarily. There's enough that either falls, or isn't used that the tortoises get their share. Nobody in my house likes figs, so they get most of them anyway.

The only thing I know about Michigan gardening is that it gets super cold in the winter lol.

Actually last winter was considered "mild," haha, but yes, we have our cold hardy plants that can take a while to come back in the summer. I am seriously still waiting for my Hibiscus moscheutos to bloom! I see some buds but they're still growing. I can't wait to see those dinner plate-sized blossoms. C'mon, buddy!

 

[Pearly]

So there's been a few changes.

View attachment 182149
It appears one of 3 of the pomegranate trees is finally bearing fruit. Sometime this year I need to remove some trunks, so the plants can focus their efforts on only a few strong trunks rather than a bunch of suckers. Last year all the flowers fell off, and that appears to be the case this year, BUT 4 have remained on this branch.

View attachment 182150 View attachment 182151

The fig tree has no problem producing, just taking longer to ripen this year.
View attachment 182152

Planted 2 climbing roses.

View attachment 182154 View attachment 182155

I have also planted some raspberry plants, seen in the cage above. View attachment 182157
1 of 3 of my new Banana trees. I am not giving up on including these in my enclosure. The benefits are too high to pass them up. The tortoises love the leaves, and they provide shade with a nice tropical touch. I have had little luck with banana trees in the past. Either they can't acclimate in the hot summer, or we lose them in the winter. I'm going to dig them up this year and see how they do stored indoors for the harsh winter months. The one pictured above is Musa Orinoco. View attachment 182158
My bamboo is hanging in there. I probably should have planted it in early spring, however, I am optimistic that it will acclimate well.


View attachment 182156

Bananas grow like weeds and I wouldn't bother digging them up, just cover the roots for the winter to protect them from freezing. Once they establish strong roots nothing will get them. I'm just little south from you and people in my subdivision have them as big as smaller Palm trees. They die back to the ground in a freeze but bounce right back to reach their full size by the end of each summer. I'm not sure about them bearing fruit tho...

Same goes for the bamboo. It's a weed! I'd leave it alone and only worry about it taking over my garden in few yrs
Again, all that maybe garbage if yours are some delicate, special varieties. The plants I'm taking about are just regular-common-peasant bananas and bamboo that you can get at lowes

 

[theguy67]

Bananas grow like weeds and I wouldn't bother digging them up, just cover the roots for the winter to protect them from freezing. Once they establish strong roots nothing will get them. I'm just little south from you and people in my subdivision have them as big as smaller Palm trees. They die back to the ground in a freeze but bounce right back to reach their full size by the end of each summer. I'm not sure about them bearing fruit tho...

Same goes for the bamboo. It's a weed! I'd leave it alone and only worry about it taking over my garden in few yrs
Again, all that maybe garbage if yours are some delicate, special varieties. The plants I'm taking about are just regular-common-peasant bananas and bamboo that you can get at lowes

Well I've tried bananas twice already, and they didn't survive the winter. I may try mulching heavily this fall, although 2 of the 3 are in pots, so I'm going to save them until next spring. This is the first time I've tried Musa Orinoco, which is suppose to be a more cold tolerant variety. I've also seen others near me with bananas in the ground, but who knows what they do for winter.

As for the bamboo, it will do fine over winter. I was only worried about it as a few of the plants went through transplant shock, dropped a lot of leaves. Luckily, I noticed a lot of new leaves yesterday on 2 of the more concerning plants. The goal is to have the entire wall of the shed to be bamboo. I'm sure once roots establish, the plants will take off.

I also have 3 sugar cane stalks in a pot. Its kinda late in the year, so I'm contemplating planting them next spring.

 

[Oxalis]

As for the bamboo, it will do fine over winter. I was only worried about it as a few of the plants went through transplant shock, dropped a lot of leaves. Luckily, I noticed a lot of new leaves yesterday on 2 of the more concerning plants. The goal is to have the entire wall of the shed to be bamboo. I'm sure once roots establish, the plants will take off.

I was worried my rose bush was going to die from transplant shock. It lost a good deal of leaves and it's taken most of the spring and summer for the flowers to finally start coming back.

 

[theguy67]

I was worried my rose bush was going to die from transplant shock. It lost a good deal of leaves and it's taken most of the spring and summer for the flowers to finally start coming back.

Well my big tortoise has pushed 2 plants over. Luckily only 1 cane broke, so I blocked it off with a post until they recover. I'll probably leave it for a solid year so the hedge can begin to form. Then nothing will be able to damage the plants.

The bamboo in the above pic is one of the 2 that didn't experience shock.

 

[theguy67]

Today is a fig day.



One of my potted bananas put out a pup already.



I think he spotted the figs...

 

[theguy67]

Winter Renovations

I got quite a bit done this past winter,...more than what can be seen in the follow pics, but they give a good idea of what is to come this spring.



The limestone in the background is being used to encircle the fountain, as a retaining wall so there will be a proper border separating that portion of the water feature form the surrounding land. I honestly had no idea what I was going to do to finish off the fountain. I knew what I wanted for a fountain, but didn't know how to define it in the enclosure. The ground will be raised 4 inches on both sides of the stream, and around the fountain.


Above, you can see the framework for the 2nd stone of the fountain. It needs one more layer of cement, and then it will be ready to be stained. I tried to give it more character than the previous one. There will be a 3rd, smaller stone to follow. I hope to plant more shrubbery around the fountain to help blend it into the landscape some more. I'm thinking some grasses, knockout rose bushes, and may some day lilies behind the stone, in the water.

Above you can see the beginning of the yearling pen. It reaches across the entire back wall of the building, 14 ft, offset about 20 inches, giving quite a bit of space for the smaller tortoises. The stones may not look it, but they are level lol. The last 3 feet curve into the wall. If you notice, there is a gate I had to take into account. The bamboo will add a nice screen for the babies, while providing a micro-climate to protect them from the sun, and help retain moisture. Its also right by a sprinkler that can be programmed to spray 4 times per day. This enclosure will also provide me with a place to plant smaller plants that otherwise would be trampled by the adults, such as small bananas. I also think some caladiums would look nice between the bamboo.

I'm very excited to see what this spring has to offer. I have big plans for this year, which includes incorporating more fruiting plants, such as berries.

 

[Oxalis]

Winter Renovations

I got quite a bit done this past winter,...more than what can be seen in the follow pics, but they give a good idea of what is to come this spring.

View attachment 198612
View attachment 198612
The limestone in the background is being used to encircle the fountain, as a retaining wall so there will be a proper border separating that portion of the water feature form the surrounding land. I honestly had no idea what I was going to do to finish off the fountain. I knew what I wanted for a fountain, but didn't know how to define it in the enclosure. The ground will be raised 4 inches on both sides of the stream, and around the fountain.

View attachment 198615
Above, you can see the framework for the 2nd stone of the fountain. It needs one more layer of cement, and then it will be ready to be stained. I tried to give it more character than the previous one. There will be a 3rd, smaller stone to follow. I hope to plant more shrubbery around the fountain to help blend it into the landscape some more. I'm thinking some grasses, knockout rose bushes, and may some day lilies behind the stone, in the water.
View attachment 198614 View attachment 198610
Above you can see the beginning of the yearling pen. It reaches across the entire back wall of the building, 14 ft, offset about 20 inches, giving quite a bit of space for the smaller tortoises. The stones may not look it, but they are level lol. The last 3 feet curve into the wall. If you notice, there is a gate I had to take into account. The bamboo will add a nice screen for the babies, while providing a micro-climate to protect them from the sun, and help retain moisture. Its also right by a sprinkler that can be programmed to spray 4 times per day. This enclosure will also provide me with a place to plant smaller plants that otherwise would be trampled by the adults, such as small bananas. I also think some caladiums would look nice between the bamboo.

I'm very excited to see what this spring has to offer. I have big plans for this year, which includes incorporating more fruiting plants, such as berries.

Looks awesome so far! Congrats on all your hard work. Can't wait to see how it looks in the spring.