I read somewhere that peat is pretty much just potting soil. Is this true? I'm buying quite alot of peat, and would prefer to use potting soil if it's safe.

Save on peat, loose on spiders.

Potting soil can not be trusted. I am of the opinion that loads of weird chemicals are mixed in with the soil to deter unwanted pests, and enhance plant growth. I can not state this as fact, but the list of shit listed on the potting soil bag is longer than the list of chemicals I use daily...

Palm peat (in brick form) is to dry for most nasty stuff, except perhaps the odd mushroom spore. Personally, I would not trust the potting soil, unless you want "potted" spiders...

You're right, it's not worth the risk just to save a few bucks.

Is palm peat the same as regular bagged peat bought at most exotic pet shops?

I'm not sure but I suppose so. Try get those compressed bricks from your friendly neighborhood Builders Warehouse. Soak in hot water for a few moments, then add spiders (after the soil has cooled). That stuff is gold mate, and can be used over and over and over...

Thanks. I'll do just that.

Shane Visser wrote: I read somewhere that peat is pretty much just potting soil. Is this true? I'm buying quite alot of peat, and would prefer to use potting soil if it's safe.

We used to swear by potting soil as substrate until a few of us wised up. Potting soil was just peat with a little perlite or vermiculite added to make it look sexy. But it tended to be expensive in quantity, and those of us with big collections needed a cheaper material. So, we switched to peat.

In addition, in North America at least, peat is increasing in cost and the potting soil manufacturers started looking for a cheaper substitute. They found it in composted wood byproducts, basically the rotting sawdust from a big pile out behind some sawmill. So, they started lacing the potting soil with these lumber or wood byproducts. Today, virtually all North American potting soil is 100% wood byproducts. (The good news is that it gets the bunny huggers off our backs about using so much precious, natural peat.)

For plants this is okay. But for arachnids, maybe not so much. We don't know specifically what kinds of wood byproducts they're using, and they refuse to be specific. And, we know that some common North American woods are toxic to animal life in general, not only arachnids. (And we're sure that a lot of woods from other countries are also toxic.) And we're not so sure that the composting process detoxifies it as completely as the natural-and-organic crowd would like us to believe. So now we don't feel safe with using potting soil around our arachnids and other arthropods.

Lastly, in a never ending battle to gain an edge over the competition, many potting soil manufacturers started added things like fertilizers, surfactants, "water gel crystals," and even insecticides and vermicides to their potting soil either as a sales pitch or so they could rationalize charging more. Again, we have no idea what these adulterations will do to our arachnids, but we suspect the worst.

So now we have three reasons to avoid potting soil: It's too expensive, it may now be inherently toxic to our pets, and the manufacturers may now be intentionally poisoning it for us.

So, we've currently settled on either of two substrates: pure, unadulterated peat; and shredded coconut husk (aka, coir, and any number of trade names). Fortunately these are all available from local garden and landscape supply dealers, and many pet shops. And, as long as they remain unadulterated by overzealous capitalists, we're happy.

On the other side of the planet, your mileage may vary. But, at least you have a heads-up.

And, I'd still read the labels before I buy the stuff!