While you may dream about gentle, sloping lawns leading to ornamental lakes, green tennis courts and carefully cultivated fields unless you’re living in a stately home, or are a character from a Jane Austen novel green space is hard to come by. However, just because your garden has more decking than grass or your landlord chose to create an extra parking space does not mean you cannot enjoy a green, lush environment. Now, thanks to a boom in city living, Londoners are noticing this wonderful wee trend and creating tiny tropical rain forests in their living rooms!
Out of Grounds
Terrariums are for indoor use only so if you do not have the space or budget to move somewhere new they are a great way to include nature in your home. You can buy either a bespoke glass house or terrarium pot. They are either open or closed, closed which just means that the terrarium is accessible via a lid instead of being open to the environment.
You can create a terrarium out of any glass vessel, it needs to be glass and clear so the sunlight can reach the plants inside and help them grow, but artists, writers, and painters have made them out of coffee pots, jam jars, glass tubes, empty fish tanks and even glass cupboards. It’s perfectly ok if you’re living in a smaller space, as even young professionals are now choosing to room share while paying off banks who offered them personal loans for debt consolidation so they can get back on their feet quicker as bills are split between all tenants.
Whatever You Like
Every terrarium requires the basics i.e. potting soil, activated charcoal to help drainage and some decorative elements like a fairy, tiny treehouse, small glass animals or a toadstool along with as many plants as you want. Obviously, some plants are more expensive than others, but be sensible and choose a good range within your budget. Keep an eye on your terrarium to see if it needs watering, a good guide is once a month, but of course, the litmus test is to see if the flower heads or leaves are dry. If so give it a good watering, but make sure not to drown the plants you have chosen.
Closed terrariums are not able to produce as much condensation, so they will need to be watered more often, as well as spraying down the sides if plants look dry, or fragile. Depending on what sort of terrarium you have your options are endless, those in humid climates are perfect for ferns, palms, African violets, and orchids while drier ones are ideal for cacti, eucalyptus, herbs and other succulents.
Forget Designer Decor
Terrariums are a fantastic focal point for rooms and are fabulous centerpieces for parties and dinners alike. Choose colored pebbles, add in bridges, and grasses, or have a theme such as seasonal plants, opposite colors, and even herbal remedies. It is a wonderful way to inject light, air, and greenery into your home not forgetting they are super simple to take care of and will help boost your mood, oxygen and productivity levels to boot!
