GARDEN Art DIY: The Closed Terrarium

The Closed Terrarium

Everybody is terrarium crazy lately. The dictionary definition of a Terrarium is “ an enclosed, indoor garden or micro climate, usually small and made of glass so that you can see your collection of plants” If you add animals to the mix, such as frogs or lizards you now have a Vivarium.

CLOSED TERRARIUM / SENSIBLE GARDENING AND LIVING

Terrariums can be closed or open. The open style is better suited to plants such as cacti and succulents where they need to be kept on the dry side. The closed style is then best suited for tropical plants, mosses and ferns which benefit from the high humidity.

I decided on a closed terrarium because I like the idea of creating a closed, micro climate or a complete water cycle. Water from the soil will rise into the air as water vapor as it evaporates. When this vapor hits the sides of the glass container, it cools down and turns back into a liquid as droplets of water. The drops then fall back down into the soil to complete the cycle where it starts all over again. Just like the real big world we live in.

What you Need:

A glass or plexiglass vessel of your choosing that has a lid.
Coarse sand or pebbles
charcoal to control odor
moss
organic rich soil that is just barely damp
decor rock and plants
SENSIBLE GARDENING AND LIVING

Make Your Layers:

add sand or pebbles
top with charcoal
add a moss layer to keep soil from falling down into the pebbles
add organic potting mix
artfully place a few rocks etc.
plant your plants

You should not have to fertilize for a year. You can then use a liquid fertilizer at 1/4 strength. If your system operates in balance, you should never have to water your plants. If your plants do get too dry then mist them with water. If the system is getting too wet lift the lid to let a little air in to dry it up a tad. Keep your terrarium out of the direct sun and from hot temperatures.

My friend Melissa was a lttle blue that she didn’t have a terrarium so I made another one for her. This one is an open terrarium and I added a little Christmas decor for the upcoming season.