Beginner Vivarium with Micro Mini Orchids

[Fishkeeper]

U. Sandersonii is probably going to die if planted in that substrate, I'm afraid. It's a carnivorous plant, so it needs a very low fertilizer content and a very low mineral content. You can make areas of peat or sphagnum moss to plant it in, as long as they get rinsed regularly with distilled water (no minerals or fertilizers) to rinse out any mineral or fertilizer leaching.

[estación seca]

It's OK to use vigorous plants if you're willing to prune regularly.

Light color (K rating) in LED lights is not a good indicator of suitability for plants. It is designed to measure how a lamp looks to a human eye, and not how well it works for photosynthesis. Different LED lights with similar K ratings might use different chemical compounds. The light frequencies emitted from the different lamps might not be equally useful for photosynthesis.

[PaphMadMan]

Small Marcgravia should be much easier to control than Ficus, with the added advantage that any excess is far more valuable for sale or trade.

Selaginella kraussiana shouldn't be a problem in general except it could overgrow smaller substrate plants near it. It should be easily controlled by trimming if necessary, unlike Ficus pumila. Consider some jewel orchids for the bottom also.

I want to make sure the distinction between outside venting and internal air circulation is clear. You need some air exchange with the outside but it doesn't take much. You will need to find a balance between your misting, humidity, venting and maybe temperature. If you have a lot of air exchange the misting needed to keep humidity up can keep things too wet. Regardless, there must be internal air movement that is almost constant.

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[Evergreenblue]

Wow, thanks again for all the responses! I've made a little progress on the tank, I just need to get some time to respond to the above and update...more to follow soon! Thanks!

[Evergreenblue]

U. Sandersonii is probably going to die if planted in that substrate, I'm afraid. It's a carnivorous plant, so it needs a very low fertilizer content and a very low mineral content. You can make areas of peat or sphagnum moss to plant it in, as long as they get rinsed regularly with distilled water (no minerals or fertilizers) to rinse out any mineral or fertilizer leaching.

Fishkeeper, thank you for that! I just got done reading a book about CP's and I don't know why that didn't click in my head... the U. sandersonii is out!

Keep in mind orchid forums are a resource, not your only resource.

I've been looking at different websites, and have a book on order... I like to refer to all of your experience as well! You've been pretty helpful.

Small Marcgravia should be much easier to control than Ficus, with the added advantage that any excess is far more valuable for sale or trade.

Selaginella kraussiana shouldn't be a problem in general except it could overgrow smaller substrate plants near it. It should be easily controlled by trimming if necessary, unlike Ficus pumila. Consider some jewel orchids for the bottom also.
I want to make sure the distinction between outside venting and internal air circulation is clear. You need some air exchange with the outside but it doesn't take much. You will need to find a balance between your misting, humidity, venting and maybe temperature. If you have a lot of air exchange the misting needed to keep humidity up can keep things too wet. Regardless, there must be internal air movement that is almost constant.

I'll look into small Marcgravia sp. Regarding the jewel orchids... I did look at those, but maybe I should take another look. I was hoping to select small foliage plants since it's not a very large vivarium and I don't want small things to get too lost. It's hard to judge the jewel orchids by online pictures... I'll look more into them.

Regarding my progress, I took a standard glass top and drilled the glass to receive the fan in the middle. My plan was to cut two narrow vents on the plastic part of the top for circulation.