How to Make a Mason Jar Terrarium

 

Proper plant selection is key to a happy terrarium.  Make sure you pair plants that have similar growing requirements.  For example, pairing succulents which thrive in drier soil with lush, humidity loving tropical plants will result in environmental discord within your terrarium.  Satisfying the growing requirements of both will be impossible.  Choose plants that require similar light and watering requirements.  Since my mason jar terrarium with have a lid and therefore higher levels of humidity, I selected plants that would thrive in that environment.

For my high humidity terrarium I chose

Pink Nerve Plant {Fittonia verschaffeltii}

Nerve plants feature dark foliage with either bright pink or white veins.  I chose the pink for a bright punch of color in my terrarium. They thrive in humid, moderate light conditions.

Baby’s Tears {Soleirolia soleirolii}

Baby’s Tears are one of my favorite low growing house plants.  They require frequent watering in order to maintain their fresh, springy growth which makes them perfect for a closed lid terrarium.

I placed a few pebbles at the bottom of my container to help with drainage, and topped that with a few tablespoons of horticultural charcoal.  The charcoal is not necessary for a successful terrarium, however it does help to combat  odors from plant material that might start to decay in such a humid environment.  If you don’t have horticultural charcoal available, consider an open lidded terrarium, or make sure you remove any plant material that begins to decay.

I added about 2 inches of sterile potting soil on top of my charcoal/pebble mixture.  I added water to my potting soil before placing it in my container because I wanted to ensure that mmy plants would have a nice environment to transition into.  Also, starting with moisten soil means that you wont end up with excess water draining into the bottom of your container.  Although the pebbles and charcoal at the bottom of the container are meant to help with drainage, the goal is to keep your mason jar from collecting water at the bottom.  Too much water will cause the soil to be excessively wet, which will encourage root rot and bacterial growth in your container.  Gross.

The last step in my terrarium creation was to position my plants.  Using a wide mouthed, quart sized mason jar was helpful because I was able to position my plants with a little more ease.  Once my nerve plant and baby tears were in place I drizzled about two tablespoons of water in my container and fastened the lid.

Closed lid terrariums do not need frequent watering.  The humidity present due to the initial watering and already moist soil is designed to create a mini ecosystem with it’s own “rain showers” in the form of condensation.  Making sure that your terrarium is in a brightly lit location will assist with this process.  It might take a month or so to get your terrarium on a watering schedule, but start with adding roughly a tablespoon of water every two weeks, making adjustments if the soil in your container dries out more frequently.

Opening the lid and allowing the container to breathe is an important step in keeping your terrarium healthy and happy.  Leaving the lid off for a few days a month should be about right.  Also, do not fertilize your terrarium, you don’t want to encourage growth in your small container.

Adding green to your indoor space is as easy as finding a canning jar, a few houseplants, and watering twice a month.