Sri Lankan Star Substrate

[Sirromo]

I have been thinking of switching my Sri Lankan Star substrate to Cypress Mulch. They are currently being housed on soil and dirt from the yard in a large tortoise table. I would like to know how much Cypress mulch to use ( specifically how deep should the substrate be ) and also how often should it be changed. Thanks for your help.

 

[AnnV]

I am interested to hear, as well.
I used just a bit of cypress mulch over a coconut coir/dirt mix. The cypress has become dry. Even spraying won't keep it as moist as it was initially.

 

[bouaboua]

I'm think to have few star next year. I got a enclosure build already, it is time to think about the substrate. How can we keep coco coir/dirt clean? without smell? without bug? I saw lots people using coco coir and dirt and other kind of substrate that kept the humility in the enclosure. I just wonder how to keep it clean? we know tortoise will pee pee in it. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Ansh]

I've used coco coir for quite some time now. I don't mix it with dirt. Maintain humidity above 80% at all times. I spot clean the enclosure every day. I also soak my stars for 15 minutes in water. They normally defecate in the water and so the substrate remains relatively clean. I previously had problems with bugs when I used other substrates. Don't have that problem now. The substrate gets changed once every 3-4 months.

 

[TortieLuver]

My stars have stayed outside 24/7 here in Arizona, but when I first got some adult stars from someone in network who kept them in a large tortoise table inside their house, I went ahead and mimicked what they did, hoping to cause the least stress. The table consisted of three inches of cypress mulch with a step down nesting box of sphagnum peat moss. I actually loved the cypress mulch for the stars and didn't find it too dry nor did it mold like some other substrates. The cypress mulch was more the size of small bark chips than the finer ones, but they were also 6-10 inches.