Building a Pit
By Garth Rankin and Fay Smith

Without a doubt the most satisfying feeling is to liberate lizards and turtles into a pit that’s taken twelve months to complete. O.K I’m a bit slow, but I like to get it right the first time. 

Let me take you through what I did and give you some tips as well.

Step 1. One of the more important considerations is drainage and rat proofing, this is done by digging a trench where your fence line will be. Mine is 5 metres by 3 metres. Dig each 12cm wide and at least 18cm deep. Put 18cm wide strips of ½" square, heavy gauge bird wire straight down into the trenches and back fill with pebbles and coarse river sand. This will also stop lizards digging out.

Step 2. Many different materials can be used for the walls. I chose colorbond fencing for several reasons. It comes in baked on maintenance free colours. It looks good forever, and you can clean it with a wet rag. I also went to the tip and purchased, for $10.00 each - two safety glass sliding doors. These slotted into the upright fencing channels perfectly. I hired a couple of fencing contractors to erect the colorbond. It took them a day and a half, where it would have taken me six to to do the same.

Step 3. Landscaping must be left up to the individual. Different species require different conditions. It must be remembered that there are many diseases associated with damp conditions and very few with dry conditions, so I decided to dig a layer of about 10cm of soil out of the pit and replace it with coarse river sand. To this I added a large universal rock pond and cascade, around which I put a layer of approximately 20 cent sized smooth round river pebbles. I then added a 3metre by 1 metre universal rock ledge and many natural rocks, logs and basking branches. I also buried waterproof  boxes under the rock ledge for shelter. The three main plants that I used where a ‘Blackboy’ (oops sorry a Grass Tree) a Banksia and a large clumping fox tail grass. I used a sparky to install an outside power source for the pond.

Well there it is, the Ritz Hotel for reptiles.

Now, what is the next project?

Story and Photos by Garth and Fay.