When I cleaned and updated my terrarium for my BP the other day, I noticed that I had mold growing on the
wood log that I have in the cage. Its real wood from a holly tree. I researched and found nothing saying that this type of tree would be harmful to my BP. I baked the log in the oven for over 2 hours before I put it into the cage. I did leave the bark on the log and I found equal amounts of info saying that you can leave it on or should take it off. I scraped some of the bark off and the mold was also underneath. There was some on one of the ends. I believe the mold is from me misting my cage to keep my humidity right.

I am looking for any suggestions on how to keep the log and not have mold. Should I also take the bark off if it? The reason I want to keep the log is because my BP's first shed was terrible and lasted into a second shed. It seemed that my BP was not trying to rub on anything to remove the shed. After I got the log in the cage, I witnessed the BP rubbing its face up against the log to start shedding. The second shed went much better than the first. It still was not a complete shed but my BP got all but about 1/3 that was left on its back. I have included a pic were you can see the log. I did have the idea of cutting down its size and maybe propping it up on the hide on the right to get it out of the substrate which is reptibark to help hold moisture. I think the reptibark helped cause the mold from me misting it. I also think I may have to clean/change the substrate more often. You can also see a climbing branch that I have from the same holly tree. It does not have mold on it. I have not seen the snake trying to rub on it to shed so that is what makes me want to keep the log.