Today we are going to make a terrarium, first assemble all your supplies.
1.Glass jar or container with a lid and thin walls or sides: The thin sides allow you to look in at your terrarium better.
Find a container that’s large enough to allow ferns to grow and still leave a small amount of space at the top and sides.
And find a container with a large mouth so you can stick your hand in it to build your terrarium—although I have also used smaller-mouth jars and chopsticks to make miniature terrariums.
2. Pebbles or grit: This will serve as your water drainage at the bottom of the terrarium. I typically put in about a 1/2 to 1 full inch of pebbles or traction grit.
3. Activated charcoal This cleans and purifies the water you add to the terrarium. You cannot use charcoal briquets like you use in a cooking grill. I put a thin layer over the gravel: about 1/4 cup.
4. Potting soil: You need to use seed starting soil, which is semi-sterile. Do not use soil from your garden or backyard, because it has microscopic bugs and molds that can ruin your terrarium. I like to put the soil in my terrarium in small hills to make it look like a real forest floor. I put in soil about 1 to 3 inches deep.
5.Moss: This is the figurehead of your terrarium operation. You can use pretty much any type of moss you can find, but do not use mosses that self-compost, such as sphagnum mosses: the easy way to spot these is to look on the bottom of the moss for any dead leaves or other dead things that are composting instead of roots. I look for moss in my backyard, under pine trees, and on wet spaces in the ground. Don't collect from the wild. Sometimes we buy moss from Moss Acres.
5.Ferns: All of the other plants I put in my terrariums are ferns or spleenworts. I look for small ferns that are slow growers and that won’t grow out of the top of my terrarium.
Steps to making your terrarium
4.add the moss and ferns (other non-roting objects like clay or special rocks.)
6. Find a good place for your terrarium.
Terrarium Placement and Care:
Place your terrarium in indirect or filtered sunlight. If it’s in a full sunlight, it will grow too fast and/or bake. Think about the real forest and the light there: This will help you in finding a good place for your terrarium to grow. They do need some light.
Cycles of condensation and evaporation are normal inside your terrarium as it warms up during the day and cools during the night. If there’s too much condensation, though, I take the lid off for an hour or a little less, but you have to make certain to put it back on or the terrarium will quickly dry out and die.
I water my terrariums about once every three months with an eyedropper, that’s all the water it needs! Don’t put much water in—just a little bit. You will know if it needs water if the terrarium looks or smells dry.
Enjoy your terrarium(s)!