I am not a crafty person, which seems a bit odd to say considering that during my 5 years of college and subsequent 12 years working as an architect I built numerous models and was actually really good at it. There obviously is a difference between traditional crafts and constructing something structural, but sometimes I feel totally inadequate when it comes to being able to do fun crafts with my kids.
Which is why I was so excited to learn about the miniature garden concept.
Terrariums are not a new concept. People have been making them along with miniature gardens and fairy gardens for years. Really there is no limit to what you can do and I promise you that one visit to a local garden center will get your wheels spinning and absolutely give you delusions of grandeur.
I recommend you start small, however, because there are some nuances and tricks-of-the-trade that you learn while doing that will totally leave you planning your next one.
Our terrarium was inspired by a new book called: Miniature Gardens: Design & Create Miniature Fairy Gardens, Dish Gardens, Terrariums and More – Indoors and Out by Katie Elzer Peters. We decided to do a canning jar terrarium because we had the jars on hand and it seemed like a great place to start for the beginner.
Materials
- Wide-mouth canning jar (We used 1/2 gallon jars but you can use any size.)
- Pea gravel (We used aquarium gravel because my kids insisted on the bright colors.)
- Activated filter carbon (We found this by the aquarium section too, they had small containers that was way more than enough.)
- Potting soil
- Terrarium-friendly plant (We used ferns for color and spikemoss for the base.)
- Figurine (My daughter fell in love with a fairy and my son chose Spongebob’s friend Patrick. He also picked out a bamboo bridge and a metal trellis and she chose a metal fairy lantern too.)
- Plastic wrap (For under the metal ring of the lid in lieu of the metal disc to let more light in.)
When it comes to what you put inside your terrarium, it’s really a personal choice but do make sure that the plants you select are suitable for an enclosed, moist container. While shopping, I spent a lot of time researching the different plants on my smartphone to see if they were appropriate. Overall it seemed like ferns and mosses were fine. Shopping for plants in Indiana in February provided a very limited selection but we did find what we needed.
Instructions
- Layer gravel on the bottom. We eye-balled this based upon aesthetics and the height of the jar. You just need enough for water to sit in between the gaps in the gravel to keep the terrarium moist.
- Add activated filter carbon on top of the gravel. We used enough to cover the gravel in a thin layer.
- Add potting soil on top of the carbon. 1″ thick is enough but keep in mind that your plants may have soil attached. Ours ended up much thicker because we didn’t anticipate that. Thankfully we had tall jars.
- Place your plants in the soil. I think we overestimated how much moss we needed so it’s quite full. It still looks great and the kids love how natural it looks.
- Add a small amount of water to the terrarium. Enough for the water to start to flow into the rocks.
- Add your figurines and any other decorations you may have. We tried to clear some of the moss out of the way so they sat on the soil and looked more like a part of the garden rather than sitting on top.
- Place plastic wrap over the rim of the jar and add the metal ring from the jar lid. Trim the plastic wrap with scissors or a knife.
- Enjoy.
Fairy Garden Terrarium
Spongebob Terrarium
We had such a great time with these and can’t wait to try more. Next time we want to do an open container garden with cactus plants.
Note: I was provided with a copy of the book mentioned to facilitate this article.
Brenda Elsner says
February 28, 2014 at 5:21 pmI would love to make some miniature gardens!!!
Kayci Stanley says
February 28, 2014 at 1:28 pmI am interested in winning a copy of this book because I am an artist that works in ceramic sculpture and I enjoy keeping plants as a hobby. I think this book could help me make some nice work.
Jane Thomas says
February 28, 2014 at 11:57 amI love miniatures, this is awesome!
Jo Ann F says
February 28, 2014 at 11:54 amI want to win because I love to garden and would have my grandson help me make one. he would love the sponge bob lol.
jofo120 at yahoo dot com
Carla says
February 28, 2014 at 1:05 amThese sound so cute! I’d love to see pictures & get some ideas.
Melinda Stephens says
February 27, 2014 at 10:54 pmI want to win because it looks like this book has some great projects that I would love to do.
Lauren Knott says
February 27, 2014 at 9:48 pmMy kids would love this! They are just getting into our garden.
Laurie Emerson says
February 27, 2014 at 8:25 pmI would love to win this book as I have always wanted to make terrariums and this books has so many choices.
RICHARD HICKS says
February 27, 2014 at 7:35 pmI want to win this because I used to make terrariums as a kid.
amy f says
February 27, 2014 at 5:30 pmthis is nice
Jennifer Barr says
February 27, 2014 at 4:11 pmI think these are really neat! Would love to see the book
eddi b. says
February 27, 2014 at 3:07 pmthese are so cool! I would love to try to create my own jar garden!
Shelby says
February 27, 2014 at 1:17 pmMy daughter made a terrarium in the 2nd grade (4 years ago) in school out of a 2 liter pop bottle. It’s the only plants I’ve been able to keep alive that long!
Danielle hall says
February 27, 2014 at 1:13 pmi love gardening anyway and i think this would be another awesome way to learn
Heather Walker says
February 27, 2014 at 12:45 pmMy daughter loves fairies and growing things, so this would be perfect
Debra Hall says
February 27, 2014 at 7:46 ami have wanted to make a terrarium for some time , but really don’t know where to start
alyce poalillo says
February 26, 2014 at 6:00 pmI have been fascinated with fairy gardens for years and would love to be able to create small gardens as I have limited space.
Belinda Shaw says
February 26, 2014 at 3:06 pmI’ve always been interested in creating a terrarium.
Jen says
February 26, 2014 at 11:33 ambecause it looks like something that me and my kids can both enjoy
Amanda says
February 24, 2014 at 4:16 pmThose look like something even I could keep alive.
Stephanie r says
February 24, 2014 at 3:55 pmThis looks like such a fun craft! Can’t wait to try it with my boys.
robyn paris says
February 23, 2014 at 4:07 pmi have never seen this before but i love it.
Stephanie Galbraith says
February 8, 2014 at 2:45 pmI would really like his book. It looks very beautiful and super interesting.
debbie says
February 7, 2014 at 8:37 amI have a fairy/ moss garden that I planted this year. It is really cute.
Chrystal D says
February 6, 2014 at 2:04 pmI have tried container gardens before & failed miserably! This book would help me get things right!
Shelton says
February 6, 2014 at 9:02 amI think the jar gardens are really cool. I’ve been searching for a hobby-this may be it!
colleen says
February 5, 2014 at 6:34 pmMy daughter loves fairy gardens. This will be a nice project to do with her over school vacation.
Robin (Masshole Mommy) says
February 5, 2014 at 3:13 pmWhat a clever idea! I want to make one now to put outside on my deck table. Well, when the snow melts that is.
Monique says
February 6, 2014 at 7:18 amLol! This does make it look fun and easy though…
Sara Phillips says
February 5, 2014 at 2:13 pmThese are SO CUTE!
I’d like to win for the inspiration!
shellie says
February 5, 2014 at 2:11 pmLove fairy gardens. I have seen some pretty amazing designs with “houses” and pathways.