- How to Make a Terrarium
- by Francine Larson
When I think of the New Year,
I always want to do a project or bring "newness" to
my surroundings. About three months ago, my husband and I put
together a terrarium. It was quick but creative. This is something
you could do with any age child or teen. Also, it makes a wonderful
hand made gift. Friends and co-workers will love it!
|
I read that a true terrarium
has a top but that top could cause more of a challenge for the
plants to grow. We bought a clear glass container with a wide
opening. You can usually find these at the pet department in
stores such as K-Mart or at a Pet Store.
It's really easy and all of these
products are easy to find. You will find them in the same place
(as mentioned above).
Here is what you do:
(1) Fill bottom of glass
with 1 inch of gravel.
(2) Sprinkle a thin layer
of crushed aquarium charcoal on gravel.
(3) Add moist potting
soil about the same size as the depth that your purchased plants
were potted in.
(4) Remove plants from
containers, loosening roots with fingers. |
|
(5) Arrange plants in your
container, putting tallest in center and others around it. Position
plants close together.
(6) Cover with colored
gravel.
(7) Wipe smudges from
glass.
My terrarium is made of 3 beautiful
orange cacti and I don't remember what the smaller plants were
but here are some suggestions:
(1) Rex Begonias, (2)
Ferns (3) Petite Peace Lilies and (4) Baby's Tears.
Place the terrarium in diffused
sun because direct sun could burn the plant and cause it to bloom
less.
Use distilled water for moistening
your plants. Remember, there is nowhere for the water to escape,
so water carefully with a kitchen baster or an empty spray bottle.
Only water your plant when you notice it starts to dry out. Moisten
until water appears in the bottom gravel layer.
You can make this simple. However,
if you really want to explore other possibilities, here are a
few web sites that I found to be helpful:
YOU CAN DO THIS!
MY HOMEMADE TERRARIAN WITH CACTI
Skippy Peanut Butter: How to
make a terrarium from a peanut butter jar.
Parent's Talk: How to make a
terrarium for a 2 liter soda bottle (plastic).
The Magic Terrarium: Directions
and advice.
Mizzou Online: History of Terrariums
and a very detailed list of plants that can be used for this
project.
CLICK HERE FOR ADVENTURES IN SCIENCE!
SCIENCE CAN BE REALLY FUN!
Three Teacher Press is continually
updating and offering new things, although we are a fairly new
web site.
We have a new " Adventures
in Science" section that is really fun. Although the links
are few, we feel that they are QUALITY sites that should be shared.
Click our scientist on the right to try out "Adventures
in Science." |
