First time making a terrarium. I thought about buying some plants online or in person but I realized that’s it’s kinda expensive and have instead decided to get plants from the surrounding area. For reference, I live in NorCal and plan to get plants+moss from a humid, lush redwood forest with a waterfall nearby (plenty of moss!). It’s gonna be a closed terrarium, but how do I know that the plants I pick will be a good fit? Do I need to use artificial light? Should I make a wall of some kind for plants to attach themselves to? Thank you!
by genericEdition
8 Comments
I made one about a month ago and the only real challenge has been how hot it gets in direct sun. Mine is mostly moss with some local ferns. The polka dot plant got cooked. Good luck!
Google “closed terrarium plants”
Whatever speaks to your soul
https://preview.redd.it/5d5lfqmeblad1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=16a8e9681f022d6a6dd67e3a2ba14a241aea406e
I keep mine sealed in indirect light with a mix of terrestrial ferns, plants, and mosses, a few aquatic plants, a gnome, and a stone mushroom.
I don’t supplement with light. In fact, I don’t do anything to this terrarium. It’s so hands off that were not on the kitchen counter, I would probably forget it existed
Identify and research any plants you want to collect, before you collect them. You need to do that anyway to make sure it’s legal. Ferns and soil-growing mosses are a good starting point, but research the individual one- they’re not all identical.
Artificial light can be a good idea. You can also try indirect natural light and see if it works.
Making a wall in that size of enclosure might be tricky. I’d personally stick with mostly just plants in the soil, with a nice piece of hardscape (wood, stone, skull) for moss to climb and potentially for a fern to live on.
https://preview.redd.it/s6fqcwimilad1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0779168e5304ca3ccc1c0c5cb54ddf383a92b534
I just experiment because I am not very smart and just let things figure it out. I put dried seaweed some moss and orchid potting soil with a few oxalis triangularis bulbs. Hopefully they catch
I have moss in one, fittonias in two, and a jade in one. I have a grow light on all of them.
https://preview.redd.it/gy4wnbt4mlad1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cc2ca9ba195e8c92b5de0d63f4cfe90e21cf6c59
Any terrarium plants will like this container, just use the proper substrate!