Indoor Terrarium

After years of secretly desiring to make one of these, I finally stepped up to the task. An indoor terrarium can be a unique, natural and inexpensive feature that can be added to your home in under an hour.  You can make any size to fit any budget and lifestyle.  It's also great for cat owners, who's cats eat plants!  Let’s get to it!

What You’ll Need

• A glass jar with a lid (I bought mine at Hobby Lobby for half off at $25.00.  I have seen smaller yet still impressive sizes at Target for under $20.00.)

• Sheet Moss
• Gravel/River Stones/Fish Gravel/Rocks from your back yard
• Activated or Horticulture Grade Charcoal (I couldn’t find this ANYWHERE so I omitted.  It’s good for moisture and odor control.)
• Potting Soil (I used moisture control.)
• 3,5,7 plants depending on the size of the jar.  An uneven number is aesthetically more pleasing to the eye.  Try to get plants that need low light, and like moisture.

 Instructions

• Place a piece of sheet moss on the bottom of the jar

• Put a 2” layer of gravel or rock on top of that.  The gravel suits as drainage for the water so the roots of your plants won’t be sitting in water and rot.

• If you found the activated charcoal, put a 1” layer on top of that.
• Add another layer of sheet moss, so the soil doesn’t mix with the gravel.

• Using a plastic cup, scoop some potting soil onto the moss.  Stand your plants next to the jar so you know how tall to put the soil in.  Ideally, you don’t want the plants to touch the side of the jar, but every picture I’ve found, it rarely happens.
• Take your plants out of their planters.  You may need to pull them apart so you get a smaller plant.
• Dig a hole in the center of the soil, and start placing your plants in the hole.  Pat the soil around the plants, over the roots back in place.  I added a little more soil at this point.

• With a spray bottle, spray the plants and soil until they’re damp, not drenched.  You can also squirt down any soil that crept up onto the sides.

• Clean the inside of the jar with newspaper, and replace the lid.
• If your terrarium becomes too foggy, remove the lid for a few hours to dry out the soil.  Feel the soil every couple of weeks to see how dry it is and if you need to re-spray.
• Remove any yellow leaves that may grow.

There you have it!  A wonderful, natural piece of artwork for your home!