Surely you have ever seen a plant in a glass jar with soil and some decoration. It is a terrariumand it is nothing more than a mini garden grown inside the glass container. It has a lot of versatility when it comes to being used as decoration, since it can be used both indoors and outdoors.
If you want to learn how to make your own terrarium and which plants are best for it, just keep reading.
Necessary materials
The advantage of terrariums compared to other types of pots is that suitable environmental conditions are recreated inside them so that the plant does not require much care. You can choose the container that you like the most and decorate it in your own way.
Once you have the container you will need the following materials:
- It should be light and allow good drainage. For better fertilization, we can add peat or moss. You can mix it with vermiculite at a 3: 1 ratio. To see if the soil has good drainage, put some in your hand and wet it. If the soil has a good drainage it should be shed because it is lighter.
- Small pebbles or gravel. These stones will help the correct drainage of the irrigation. They are placed at the bottom and their size should be around half a centimeter. If we put some stones on top, they will give a good finish to the terrarium.
- Activated carbon. It is used to keep the earth always moist. If your container has a hole in the bottom to drain water, you don’t need to use activated charcoal. Its function is to absorb excess water. It is placed in the background.
- Shells, stones, etc. You will need materials that do not harm the water, but that serve as decoration to personalize your terrarium.
Steps to make the terrarium
Once we have all the necessary materials to make our terrarium, we begin to do it.
First we must properly clean the container to avoid possible contamination and make it as transparent as possible. It is advisable to wash it with antibacterial soap so that the plant is not contaminated. For a better finish, rinse it several times.
Now, is placed about 2,5 centimeters high gravel mixed with a good amount of activated carbon. In this way we will be preparing the drainage. We add the layer of moss to prevent the soil from seeping into the gravel. To handle the moss it is advisable to use gloves, since, otherwise, we will be having direct contact with the fungi.
Once all the drainage is in place, we start to pour the earth. The amount of soil that we will need will depend on the type of container we have and the length of the roots of the plants. We can flatten the earth to have a more level surface.
To properly plant our plants in the terrarium it is important that, when removing them from their pot, Shake off all excess soil from the roots. Once removed, we dug a hole in the soil of the terrarium to plant them. It is important that the leaves are not in contact with the glass to avoid diseases and fungi.
Once we have the plant already installed in the terrarium, we can add the decorations that we deem appropriate. After it is watered enough so that the stones below the container become wet.
Maintenance
The terrarium requires some maintenance work to always preserve its best conditions for the plants. The placement of the terrarium must be adequate, depending on the type of plant that we have planted. It must be taken into account that the glass is transparent and that, if we put it in full sunlight, we could damage the plant.
It is advisable to have the terrarium inside the home to avoid sudden changes in temperature. Irrigation depends on the type of plant we have, but it is usually watered every one to two weeks. If we have a cactus planted in the terrarium, we only need to water once a month.
If we want our terrarium to last longer, we will have to do some maintenance tasks such as eliminating wilted parts, removing weeds, plants that are sick that can infect and fungi. In this way we can keep our terrarium in good condition.
Plants for the terrarium
Now we go on to name the plants and the characteristics that are most optimal for making a good terrarium. Obviously, the choice of plants is up to the consumer’s taste. However, there are plants that are more suitable for terrariums and some aspects that you should take into account.
Pick some plants that have similar characteristics and make sure they grow well together. It is best to choose those plants that do not require much care. The most used for these things are mosses, succulents, ferns and cacti. It is important that the plant that we want to put in our terrarium does not stick out of the container or grow so much that it is in continuous contact with the glass walls. This could lead to disease or fungus.
The best plants for terrariums are those that best withstand shade and tolerate high temperatures and humidity levels. Regarding the container, it can be made of plastic or glass. The most important thing is that it is deep enough to contain the roots.
We can have several types of terrariums set in different ways and containing plants according to the climate that we want to imitate. We can have a tropical terrarium with plants such as orchids, bromeliads, lichens, tillandsias, pothos, ferns, dwarf ficus, etc. All these plants adapt well at higher temperatures and high humidity. In addition, these tropical terrariums are the ones that can accommodate the most types of plants and in good condition.
On the other hand, we can have a terrarium that mimics a desert climate and we can add plants such as cacti and succulents. These terrariums are well suited at low humidity and high temperatures. You should also know that they will require less care and less watering.
With this information you can build your own terrarium in your style with a beautiful decoration. Let’s get down to work!