Bedding for Hissing roaches???

C

Courtney

First Instar
I'm curious what is the absolute best substrate for them. I've got quite a good sized population thanks to another member (BrickTop) and my wife suggested Saw dust but it occurs to me that this would inhibit humidity by absorbing all the moisture then it it'self would become a harbinger of Mold and other undesirables. I was told potting soil would work well but my question is how do I know it won't be loaded with parasites or toxic fertilizers that would hurt them????

 
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I've found that the very best mold-preventing, well-looking, and cost-effective bedding for hissers is a mix of 40% cypress mulch and 60% coconut coir blocks (not the fine coconut fiber.) The coir blocks encourage the growth of a white fungus that humans aren't allergic to and the roaches love to eat, and this fungus in turn has antibacterial and antifungul (strange, I know) properties to it.

 
I use coconut fiber (as for all my roaches) and keep the substrate as dry as possible. I had a problem with mold once, so I have their box more ventilated and it has not come back since then. I make up for the dry substrate by feeding fruit or vegetables twice a week and spraying the walls of the box every now and then.

 
I use a potting soil mix that doesn’t have fertilizers or perlite. I can’t remember the name of the brand… I really like it though.

 
My bio teacher breeds them and she uses shredded paper strips. She fills the aquarium with the strips and puts plastic hamster tubes in for them to hide in

I have no idea if this is a good setup or not, though. They seem to breed well

 
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Courtney said:
I'm curious what is the absolute best substrate for them. I've got quite a good sized population thanks to another member (BrickTop) and my wife suggested Saw dust but it occurs to me that this would inhibit humidity by absorbing all the moisture then it it'self would become a harbinger of Mold and other undesirables. I was told potting soil would work well but my question is how do I know it won't be loaded with parasites or toxic fertilizers that would hurt them????
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I've kept my colony for almost 20 years with no substrate at all. They do very well this way, but substrate won't hurt them either.

 
I have been keeping them for years on cypress mulch. When I tried it without substrate, it was too messy, smelly, had lots of flies, and was overall a bad experience for me. Have none of these issues with the substrate.

 
fangsalot said:
is the red cypress mulch dangerous for roaches?is that an actualle dye on the wood?
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You can get a big bag of cypress mulch at Lowe's for cheap, and it is not dyed. you can look it up on their website i believe it is the no-float kind.

I "dry" mine out first in the sun.

just recently got a bunch of hissers from someone that was keeping them on corn cobb litter. has any tried that?

 
Hi everyone! This is my first time posting! I will tell you right off, I am not good with the scientific names of my roaches, so bear with me!

I have just pretty much started my "hobby" about a year ago. Starting with Dubias. I now have 14 different types! I just got a pair of Rhino Roaches!I thought I would start in this thread, because it is (like most threads here) super interesting to me to hear what others use. I had all mine on Coco Fiber, mulches and dried leaves. I found that I was getting tons of mites and fruit flies.. (the bane of my existence.)I pull the food daily but still was a never ending battle. I decided to try Sphagnum moss now. I mix a little coco fiber with it just to give it some body.I have been using this for 1 week now, and not a mite in site.

The roaches seem to like it, and when i mist, it stays moist for a long time. It dries out underneath, but stays pretty moist in the middle.I give them a good bunch of it, and the ones the burrow seem to really like it.

I live in a pretty humid area in the summer, Wisconsin, so mites and fruit flies are all part of the game.

Has anyone had any bad effects with Sphagnum? I get it at home depot, it is an organic and actually harvested right here in Wisconsin.

Thank you for taking time to read this! I have lots of questions, and my bug buddies are sure to be tired of me "bugging" them all the time!!!

Thank you Kyle, Orin, Dexter and Peter for your patience and help you have given me. You guys are the best! :)

 
I have two colonies of hissers...I Keep one on Crushed walnut shell which is a pain in the rear to clean out...The other colony has SOME Cyprus bark that I'll wet down for the humidity...Seems to work well for me. Here's the pix

Walnut Shell Hissers

2011-10-08_21-54-40_279.jpg


Cyprus Bark in with Discoids

2011-10-08_21-56-45_932.jpg


 
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I think hissers are fine without substrate. The substrate is good if you want a whole cleaner ecosystem with isopods and springtails and such, but I don't think the hissers need it.

 
I dont use any substrate, if you have a colony 100+ (varying ages) , it would make cleaning out a nightmare.

 
Vulgaris said:
My bio teacher breeds them and she uses shredded paper strips. She fills the aquarium with the strips and puts plastic hamster tubes in for them to hide in

I have no idea if this is a good setup or not, though. They seem to breed well
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Can you use sand for the madagascar incloser.

 
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