Minnesota outdoor habitat nearly complete!

[libscoot]

Since getting Sheldon in January I'd been impatiently waiting for Spring thaw to get started on the outdoor home. After 2 months work It's now almost complete, I think! I've got Tortoise Supply's Testudo Mix growing since April in the strip of leafy greenery outside the enclosure. The interior has 2-week-old seedlings of the same mix. I also just planted the bigger plants (tortoise-safe per Tortoise Table), they came from a certified pesticide- and herbicide-free supplier. They are aster, phlox, hollyhock, and bee balm.
Whole shebang topped off with a thin layer of cypress, once the seedlings get a little more mature I'll probably add a bit more.
The sides are 12" tall. Still debating what to use for a top for security. Maybe several panels of welded wire mesh?
I've read recently that his hide, which I built with bricks and an upside-down bird bath, might get too hot? I have an large outdoor umbrella that I can put up for an additional layer of shade if needed.
Any thoughts, critiques, suggestions welcome! I'm thinking of adding some more bigger plants too, not sure what would be overkill. I want to keep it to plants that are hardy perennials for Minnesota, which limits things a bit.
Bonus close-up pics of Sheldon for attention.

 

[daniellenc]

It’s looking great just beware of digging!!

 

[Jay Bagley]

It's looking really good!!

 

[libscoot]

It’s looking great just beware of digging!!

Definitely! The wire you might see around the panels is buried into ground, I was planning to go 10” deep but the heavy clay stymied me in parts. It’s at least 4” deep and usually 6-8” deep all around, wherever the clay got too thick and hard for me to go any further.
But digging is my biggest worry. One reason I’m planning to build up the mulch a little more (while trying to make sure he can’t climb!)

 

[libscoot]

So, it feels like so much longer but a few days into Sheldon's daily visits (still not out full time or even majority of the day till I figure out better predator deterrence) a few thoughts & observations:
Tonight he definitely seemed much more at home. Most of the previous days he's run to a corner or his hide pretty immediately & dug in. Today he wandered quite a bit all around, tried out the various plants, dug in, got out, dug in again somewhere else, etc. It's fun to see him getting more familiar & comfortable with the space - and more active generally.
He seems to like his makeshift hide (stack o' bricks + upside-down birdbath, using materials on hand), even though it's a bit taller than what's usually recommended.
I'm still struggling a bit with the topper, especially since I have some taller plants in there. My latest brainstorm is weave a lattice of the same wire cloth/mesh I used as an underground barrier, leaving gaps for the plants to grow. This may be a genius move, or an idiotic one. The main things I'm concerned about are 1) strength against intended foes; 2) allowing sufficient sunlight to penetrate; 3) ablity to remove all or part to retrieve Sheldon whenever necessary.

I'd love to have more experienced owners' input on what you did for a lid, especially if you did have larger bushes/plants growing in the habitat.

 

[libscoot]

So - we decided to go UP rather than over, with all the plants & such. While we could do a wire mesh over this frame, because it's so close to the house anyway & because the height (we hope) will be something of a deterrent, we're going to start out with heavy-duty poultry netting draped over the frame you see here, with a tent flap-type opening on the side where his in-ground pool and hide are. I'm hoping the fencing will arrive this weekend!