It's certainly been a chilly start to the year but I'm turning the heat up (literally, lol!) and creating some tropical green goodies to brighten my home by making some Terrariums. For those not in the know a terrarium is a glass container filled with tiny plants that do well in a humid, moist environment, although you can adapt your terrarium by using different types of soil to suit different plants, say by using more sandy composite you could create a cacti terrarium. Easy peasy :)
This idea has been trending high on Pinterest with gorgeous geometric shaped glass houses made with copper and brass frames adorning many a discerning designer coffee table or kitchen.
I can't afford that kind of stuff but what I have got is a collection of vases and jars that I had used for lots of different purposes at one time or another displaying fairy lights and junky/cool ideas like that. After I had cleared out the fairy lights and raided my loft I ended up with three containers, and a Douwe Egberts coffee jar without the lid.
Other bits you need are compost obviously, and pebbles or stones, even glass or ceramic beads for drainage placed at the bottom of your container.
These are also useful for surrounding you plants at soil level to help keep moisture in the soil and therefore creating a humid environment for those tropical plants. You can also add a layer of sand on top of the drainage pebbles, this means if you over water, the soil will not wash down into the bottom of your container (I skipped this as I'm watering with a mist/spray and it shouldn't be an issue) it also looks good as you get that lovely layered effect, so by all means fire ahead if that's the look you prefer!. I'll list the plant names at the bottom for you, so read on folks ;)
So its basically layering - pebbles, sand (optional), compost, then the plants go in, then add more pebbles.
The other thing I bought, purely for decorative reasons was some gorgeous aubergine coloured artificial Reindeer moss.
Why artificial?
Why coloured?
Why Reindeer Moss?
Artificial, because I'm not after a spreading plant like moss after all my hard work! Too fiddly to try to control!
Coloured, because it adds another dimension to the terrarium, creating contrast!
Reindeer moss, because it has a wonderful foamy structure and almost looks like coral except that it is soft and sponge-like to the touch.
I did a little research online about how much plants would cost and what sorts of plants are classed as 'terrarium' plants and quickly found that yet again eBay was much cheaper than pretty much anywhere else and with a wide variety of plants. I'm not put off ordering from eBay for plants, I did this last year and found a seller where I bought both a young quince and a jasmine plant for a really good price, after having been unable to buy them at any of my local suppliers. Both of which arrived in good time and were well packaged. They now seem happy and at home in my small garden. I'll be sure to update you in spring, but certainly they had established themselves well by autumn last year and I'm waiting for them to really take off this year (gardening - not instant gratification by any means!).
I'm waiting for a delivery of a Tigers Tooth Aloe plant, which is so pretty, it has white stripes on its green leaves and little white, pointy ends like teeth. Perfectly named!
It will be living in our teeny coffee jar terrarium on the far right!
And the tall thin elegant vase in the middle is hopefully going to be the home of a miniature orchid, I love orchids :). As soon as they arrive I'll plant them up and update this post so that all Terrarium content stays in the one post.
So that's how I spent my pocket money this month folks, I'll try not to kill them and I'll post some progress pics in a few months time.
Before I forget water/mist weekly and feed every 6-8 weeks.
lots of love,
Samantha x
