Best types of hides&plants?

[nightrainfalls]

I originally bought a Habba Hut from Zoo Med for my little boy but then doing some more research led me to see that it was made from cedar so I originally took it out. The local fish/reptile store owner told me "no cedar, no pine." So my question is, what should I use for hides? And I mean like, specific brands and names. Also I need to get the humidity right in his terrarium very soon and I don't know about plants. What kind of plants should I use? There's the fake-ish ones you can buy from reptile stores and such, but will those misted by a spray bottle of water help? Or should I get real living plants and figure out how to maintain those in my tank?

Any and all help will be appreciated!!

Welcome to the forum. You have probably just started a big fight, since there is quite a bit of disagreement over pine and cedar and how safe they are. I would not be too concerned over the cedar nature of the hide. Put the hide in the tank, watch the snake and see if it uses the hide. If the snake does not use the hide, then by all means replace it. Personally, I don't feel you need to buy commercial hides, unless you want to go for a certain tank decor. I usually make hides out of PVC piping. I try to find a pipe that the snake could ball up in and feel contact on two sides and the bottom. I usually get an elbow and a straight piece or a few elbows, and snap them together. They are easy to sterilize and can be taken apart and reassembled as needed. It is easy to make quite a few different hides this way. If you scatter them around the enclosure, then the snake can choose whichever hide it wants. As the snake gets larger, get larger pipe.

There are two tricks to getting the snake out. If the snake does not have a firm grip on the hide, the pipe can simply be pulled apart. At that point the snake usually crawls out. The other method is to put the hide in your lap, cover one end with a dry washcloth, and touch the snake from the other side. The snake will usually crawl out of the tube and into the wash cloth. As a side note, I have found that covering a nervous snake with fabric will make it feel safer when it is being handled.

As far as live plants go, I love spanish moss hung from the top of an enclosure. Just mist the moss twice a day and it helps keep humidity up. I also use croton, sago palm, and marble queen pothos. If you do this, you need daylight in the tank. I usually use an led light bar with a cool color temp. It is easy to get a timer and have the light turn on and off every twelve hours. One note about pothos, the sap is slightly irritating and you should take it out if the snake breaks the plant and exposes the sap. It is not dangerous if it is not damaged, and short term exposure to the sap is not a threat. I know several Iguana people who put the plant in Igauna enclosures, and the lizards can tolerate eating it in small amounts. Long term exposure to the sap of the plant can cause skin and eye irritation. I usually keep the vines off of the substrate so the snake doesn't inadvertently damage the plant.

The other plants are pretty safe. I have often seen snakes use the sago palm to extract shed skin.

Have a great time on the forums. Good luck setting up your tank.

David