Terrarium Making

Your Guide To Creating Your First Terrarium

Have you seen a terrarium you would like to have in your home? Or do you want to personalise a terrarium to match your interior? Take full advantage of our supplies and our guide to terrarium making to get started!

What Is A Decorative Terrarium?

A decorative terrarium is a collection of decorative plants that are placed in a glass vessel. They are often surrounded with decorative pebbles. It provides you with a decoration, but also a live plant to look after and grow inside your home.

What Supplies Do I Need To Create A Decorative Terrarium?

To create a decorative terrarium, you only need a minimum amount of supplies. To ensure you have your bases covered and you can get started immediately, we have provided an overview of the necessary supplies below.

Glass container or vessel: You will need a nice glass container or vessel, which will hold the soil, stones, and the plant inside. You want this vessel to be open on the top, as this gives you easy access to the plant.

Different stones and pebbles: Depending on the size of your vessel, you will need some stones and pebbles. While they have decorative purpose, they have a functional purpose as well. Since you will be watering your plant, you need a barrier that can drain the water away and prevent rot from setting in. The stones and pebbles around your terrarium will do just that.

Activated charcoal: Not everyone adds activated charcoal to their terrarium project, we highly recommend you do so. Adding a small layer of activated charcoal will perform various functions. Firstly, it will keep any water you add to the terrarium fresh. Secondly, it prevents some of the bacterial growth that could occur. In other words, it keeps your terrarium looking clean and pristine.

Soil: You will require some potting soil for your terrarium, otherwise you would have nowhere you can put your plants. When looking for potting soil, be sure to have a look at the various options out there. Some potting soil is more suitable for certain plants than others, so it can be advantageous to do your research beforehand.

Which Plants Are Most Suitable For A Terrarium?

When selecting plants for your homemade terrarium, it is important to consider the environment the plants will be placed in. A terrarium can have higher levels of humidity, which is something to take into consideration. In addition to that, you also need to choose some plans that are small enough to go into the vessel.

To help you get started, here are some plants that are popular for terrariums, as well as plants that can thrive in this kind of environment.

The air plant: Air plants are really easy to work with and perfect for beginners. So, if this is your first terrarium, this is the plant we recommend. They require little maintenance and thrive in humid environments.

As soon as you receive your air plant, we advise soaking it for at least fifteen minutes and then allowing it to dry upside down. Once this is done, you can plant it in the terrarium.

Consider the weather and the temperature when you add water for this lovely plant. When it is really dry, you should water and mist the plant more often than in colder temperatures.

The Moon Valley: When you like something a little more textured and unusual, you could use a Moon Valley plant in your terrarium as well. However, it is important to consider that this particular plant can grow up to approximately 25 centimetres. So, you might have to move the plant if the glass vessel is not big enough.

Like the air plant, the Moon Valley requires little maintenance. Interestingly, this particular plant does not need a liberal amount of water but can still thrive in a more humid environment. They also need little in terms of fertiliser. In fact, using strong fertiliser is advised against, as strong fertiliser could turn the leaves brown.

An additional interesting feature of the Moon Valley is that it is completely pest-free. If you have been holding off on a terrarium because of the potential bugs plants can bring, then you don't have to worry about it with the Moon Valley.