DIY Florarium: step by step instructions for beginners | TOP 100 Creation Ideas (Photo & Video)

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Fans of exotic indoor flowers, shrubs, bonsai dwarf trees sometimes have to give up keeping heat-loving flowers at home.
The reason is unsuitable urban climatic conditions: lack of lighting in winter, dry air, cold on the windowsill from the window.
To solve the problem, you can make a florarium, made at home with your own hands.

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Definition of the concept of florarium and its specificity

Home mini-garden in an aquarium for fish

Florarium - this is a small home greenhouse made of a transparent glass container, inside which heat-loving crops are beautifully placed. There are also made entirely of wood, or combined, with plastic or glass inserts.

The plant terrarium is equipped with a narrow opening on the side wall or upper part, designed for air circulation and creating a microclimate inside the jar or vase. To create an unusual mini-garden, they use both special containers for growing outlandish flowers and shrubs, as well as watering cans, glass jars, vases, bottles, bowls, teapots that can be found at home.

The main function of the product is to maintain a relatively constant temperature and humidity, as in a greenhouse or greenhouse. By equipping such a home greenhouse with equipment for lighting and heating, the plant terrarium will not depend on solar heat and light. Thus, in the container it is possible to grow whimsical and demanding plants for care and environmental conditions.

To create flower terrariums, bowls, round glass vases, wine glasses, aquariums or animal terrariums are used as a container. It has another name - the florarium showcase.

Due to the fact that the plant is completely open from above, it is provided with regular watering, protected from drafts, the temperature regime must be strictly observed.

Home greenhouse has a compact size, allowing it to be placed even in small apartments or on narrow window sills where large flower vases cannot be installed. By creating a variety of compositions, using decorations, such home gardens look impressive and stylish, especially when compared with classic indoor flowers in pots.

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Varieties of florariums

One of the varieties of florarium

In essence, the role of a home greenhouse under glass is to mimic the natural habitat of selected crops., so it should be created taking into account the climatic zone and the habitat conditions of the bushes, flowers and trees that will grow in it.

It is not recommended to plant desert succulents and ferns that live in humid forests in one such home greenhouse. Each species culture requires its own irrigation regime, temperature and ventilation.

"Tropical Rainforest"

Terrarium "Tropical Rainforest"

"Tropical Rainforest"

Such a glass greenhouse is based on plants from tropical rainforests: the humid forests of Southeast Asia, the Amazonian rainforests, the Atlantic forests and others. Even in a small vessel, it is possible to recreate a miniature copy of the multi-tiered equatorial forests of the Amazon by planting plants with different heights.

Note, that in front the composition should be left open, thus demonstrating all the tiers of the forest.

The look of the rainforest is created, for the most part, visually, using trees and shrubs that are sold in every flower shop. Therefore, it is not necessary to acquire rare species. The main thing is that the seedlings selected for the greenhouse have relatively the same soil requirements, moderate growth and the need for a high level of air humidity.

For the mini-greenhouse "Rainforests" choose such miniature bushes and dwarf trees:

begonia
miniature ficuses
crotons
dwarf ferns
asparagus
selaginella
chamedorea

Care. It consists in maintaining the optimal temperature and humidity level in a vessel with a tropical composition. The temperature should not fall below + 25 ° Hg, the humidity level should be in the range of 70-85%. In the case of very dry air or the creation of a showcase florarium, its inhabitants are provided with frequent watering or regular spraying.

To maintain constant air humidity, a tiny bowl of water, pre-decorated with decor, or a snag soaked in water is placed in the tank.

"Semi-desert"

The idea of the florarium "Semi-desert"

"Semi-desert"

If there is no time to constantly monitor the level of humidity in the container, regularly water and feed the soil, there are species crops that do not need careful care. We are talking about the inhabitants of semi-deserts and deserts - these are succulents. Despite the fact that such a structure is considered a suitable habitat only for tropical crops, succulents are also grown in it, which feel great in a glass jar or vase.

For planting and maintaining succulents, open containers or vessels without a narrow neck are taken. Finely sifted and coarse sand is used as soil, which is decorated with stones or ceramic fragments.

To perform a succulent semi-desert, these types of original forms are planted:

adromiscus
kalanchoe
spurge
young
euphorbia
beard
agave
varieties of cacti

Care. It is worth watering and irrigating seedlings as the soil dries. However, the need for moisture also depends on their root system.

During active growth (from spring to autumn), planted seedlings are watered once a week, and in winter - once every 3-4 weeks. If you have a trip lasting a couple of weeks, upon arrival home, the succulents will look the same as before departure.

They prefer to grow in moderate room temperature, while in winter they need temperatures reaching + 13-15 °. Place the succulents on a windowsill so that they get enough sunlight. Do not forget about the soil: it is better to use leafy soil (soil with rotted fallen leaves), which is dug in a park or garden.

"The mountains"

Home greenhouse variety "Mountains"

"The mountains"

Mountain plants that can be used to create compositions in a home greenhouse are conventionally divided into two types:

Cultures living on high, rocky, semi-desert plateaus
Cultures found in the forest foothills

Therefore, for the mountain terrarium, the same assortment of plants is used as for the two previous varieties of terrarium. In dry mountainous areas, semi-desert plants grow, and in the mountains, overgrown with forests, inhabitants of humid forests are located. Specific species for the rocky mountains are saintpaulias (Uzambara violets) and some types of climbing crops.

Depending on which direction is chosen, choose greasy, organic-rich soil, with drainage or desert, with large stones. For the mountain composition, a large number of irregularly shaped stones are used, which have sharp edges and imitate rocky peaks and ledges.

As flowers and shrubs for a mountain composition, they are perfect:

ivy
cacti
seleginella
succulents
ferns
Saintpaulia

Care. Depending on the type of green inhabitants and composition, care will be the same as for a terrarium with desert or tropical plants.

"Moss"

Florarium using moss

"Moss"

Moss is a creeping plant distributed throughout the globe, with more than 10,000 species. As a rule, bryophytes grow in shady and humid places, so they are often located near water. However, there are also species that live in dry and sunny areas or live in areas with low air temperatures.

In a home greenhouse, in most cases, moss is used as an additional element that covers empty areas. However, it can also exist as an independent decoration of a mini-garden. For this option, moss is purchased in flower shops.

They use a variety of moss for decorating indoor flowers or for landscape design, for example, sphagnum moss. Or you can dig moss yourself in the forest. It is cut without roots, only the upper part, then the moss coating can recover.

Other cultures are also added to the moss composition, but it is worth keeping an eye on so that they do not cover the hero of the composition or attract more attention to themselves. This creeping species often prefers to grow in acidic soil, so it is worth buying a substrate designed for moss in the store. It is laid on top of the ground.

Care. For the moss cover, natural habitat conditions are created. It is worth placing a bowl of water in a container, decorating it and spraying the composition regularly from a spray bottle.

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Benefits of creating a home mini-garden

Option to create a terrarium for children

In addition to the listed advantages in the form of the ability to grow tropical plants in your apartment, regardless of climatic conditions, and the compactness of the tank with the composition, there are other advantages:

Beauty. A glass vase, bowl, glass or other container filled with live plants and decorated with pebbles, snags, figurines looks very interesting and uncommon. Such a composition will decorate a boring or minimalist interior.
Benefit. A picturesque and miniature greenhouse will become a real holiday and joy in the house, it will bring harmony and peace.
Practicality. If there is not enough time to care for indoor flowers and provide them with the proper growing conditions, but the desire to grow flowers, a mini-garden will be the best option. Unpretentious plants planted in a container, complemented by decor, will delight the eye of a busy amateur grower. In addition, it is not difficult to take care of the florarium as a whole.
Amusement. For both children and adults, the process of observing and caring for a small garden will be interesting and exciting. Also, thanks to the creation of a whole landscape, the kids develop their creative abilities.

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Plants suitable for cultivation under glass

Greenhouse with succulents

A seedling that is placed under glass will sooner or later begin to actively develop and grow, due to high humidity and temperature, favorable for most plants. However, for some species, such conditions are familiar and necessary, so they have an active growth, as a result of which they fill all the space in the tank, and then go beyond it. To avoid this, the selection of green inhabitants for closed mini-gardens occurs with particular scrupulousness.

For beginner florists who create such a greenhouse for the first time in their home, succulents are suitable: saxifrage, jade, agave. They are characterized by slow growth and unpretentiousness in living conditions and care. As mentioned above, with their help, mountain or desert landscapes are created.

For the design of the rainforest, bushes of saw, chlorophytum, fittonia, tradescantia, begonias. They are actively growing and developing, so the growth point of the last two bushes should be systematically pinched. And chlorophytum and similar dwarf shrubs are completely replaced with new ones.

Difficulties in care deliver orchids. To properly contain them, spacious orchidariums are created for flowers, equipped with lighting and a ventilation system. If a small vase or jar is taken, then varieties of orchids with short peduncles are planted in it (for example, a lady's slipper).

Materials for creating a mini-garden at home

Drainage for florarium

To create a home greenhouse under glass, you will need the following materials and tools:

Soil (soil) - is selected depending on what type of plant will be planted. Succulents and cacti are laid out with a layer of peat and fine sand in a ratio of 2: 1, moisture-loving crops are poured in equal parts with vermiculite, earth and perlite. Flour is added to maintain the required level of soil acidity. Another way to prepare the soil mixture is to buy ready-made soil in a flower shop, which is ideal for each type of green inhabitants of a garden showcase.
Drainage – the drainage layer is made up of expanded clay, coarse sand, broken brick, activated carbon, decorative small stones or pebbles
Decor - small pebbles, colored sand, driftwood, twigs, figurines, houses, shells and more are suitable as decorative elements. It all depends on fantasy
Tools - tweezers, a syringe or a special bottle for watering, a set of garden mini-tools or a spatula, gloves, skewers to fix the decoration, a wine cork to compact the soil, scissors

Optional equipment

An interesting idea for creating lighting for a mini-garden

Hygrometer and thermometer. Devices needed to monitor the level of humidity and temperature in the container in order to provide the green inhabitants of the florarium with the most similar living conditions. As a rule, tropical species need high temperature and humidity, so a thermometer and hygrometer will provide control of these indicators.
Backlight. Installed as additional lighting. To diffuse and soften bright light, it is worth using only opaque shades. If the light from the greenhouse is too bright and intrusive, or interferes with sleep at night, the glass of the container is tinted. This gives an interesting effect to the shop window and solves the problem
Fan. Due to the closed space, the plants need to create a constant air circulation, then the inside of the container will be fresh and clean. During the installation of the ventilation system, it is worth considering the volume of the showcase with the garden
Automatic watering. Optional device. However, with its help, there will be no need to constantly worry about the right level of air humidity and it will become easier to take care of garden dwellers.

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Tanks for plant terrarium

Various options for containers for the florarium

The best solution would be to buy a ready-made vessel for a mini-greenhouse, because you cannot create such a container on your own. However, if there are no financial opportunities or just the place where such containers are sold is unknown, then improvised containers are also boldly used: glass jars, salad bowls, teapots, glasses, flasks, light bulbs, bottles. Another option is an old fish tank.

To practice, plastic transparent containers are also quite suitable, but their service life is not long. In some cases, wood or a combination of wood and glass is used.

Types of containers that differ in shape

Open florarium

round
geometric (rectangular, beveled, square, cubes, cones, etc.)
author's containers created by own design
vases

Container selection recommendation. If possible, the shape of the vessel should be chosen in accordance with the height and width of the flowering shrub that will live in it. For example, for tall crops, a long vase and a glass drop-shaped vessel are suitable.

As mentioned above, there are two types of container for a plant terrarium: closed and open. The latter type is more popular than the first, since it is comfortable to create a composition in it, there is constant air circulation in the showcase, and it is the best option for breeding succulents and cacti.

In a closed container, a constant level of temperature and humidity is maintained, therefore, it is excellent for tropical crops that are sheltered from pets, children, and drafts. However, creating an indoor terrarium can be done by an experienced florist who knows what equipment to install for which plant. In addition, they require regular ventilation, and maintenance is complicated by the fact that drainage releases excess moisture.

Types of containers by type of placement

Hanging mini gardens

floor
desktop
suspended

Floor models, as a rule, are placed in restaurants, shopping centers, large apartments, salons. They are large, with complex design and decor, and are made by professionals.

Desktop tanks are the most common and simple option. They are placed anywhere - on a shelf, on a table or on a windowsill. The vessels are small in size, so they look good in small apartments or offices.

Suspended mini-gardens, in most cases, are used to decorate the courtyards of restaurants or the landscape of country houses. They are made for weddings or other special occasions to elegantly decorate the interior.

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Instructions for creating a florarium

After carrying out all the preparatory stages, you can begin to create your own mini-garden in glass. To do this, you need to follow several steps

Location selection

Florarium located in the center of the room

For a small greenhouse, it is worth taking the best place in the room so that it is in the center of attention and in full view of the people in the room. The home garden is placed facing the people looking at it, and so that it can be seen from different points of the room.

If artificial lighting in the form of a lamp was chosen for arranging the container, then there is no need to put the composition on the windowsill.

Even if the dwelling is spacious and a large vessel can fit in it, you should not choose this option. Otherwise, instead of a small and neat mini-garden, you get a bulky structure.

Preparing the vessel and determining the necessary equipment

Illuminated Mini Garden

A glass jar or vase should be free of cracks and chips. Before placing a drainage layer in it, it should be thoroughly washed, poured over with boiling water and degreased with a cotton wool soaked in alcohol.The cleaning procedure is carried out immediately before filling the soil.

It was described above what forms transparent vessels exist, where they can be purchased or what to replace ready-made professional containers with. It remains only to choose the most suitable option. Additional equipment was also described (thermometer, backlight, fan, etc.), which is used at will.

Bottom arrangement

Filling the bottom of the florarium with small pebbles

The base of the bottom is made of a plastic grid that protects the bottom of the container. Or they fall asleep with a drainage layer of charcoal, sand or expanded clay. Without fail, a hole is made at the bottom, which serves to drain dirty water when cleaning the container.

In the lower part of the structure, a tray with water is placed or it is poured directly onto the bottom of a transparent vessel. Thus, the atmosphere of the tropics is recreated.

Arrangement of green inhabitants of the terrarium

Decoration with stones

In addition to the fact that seedlings can be planted directly on the bottom of the tank, and decorated with stones, snags or twigs, planting in a basket or pot, hanging or placing on a shelf is possible. However, the first option looks more natural than the second. In general, the arrangement of such a product depends on the imagination.

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Care Tips

It is important to create the right climatic conditions within the ecosystem and provide garden residents with proper care.

So, for example, if there is no condensate on the walls of the container, you will need to spray a small amount of water inside and close the lid (if provided).

It is worth applying fertilizers to the soil only if if yellowing, deformation or discoloration is noticeable on planted shrubs and flowers.

If fungus or mold appears in the tank with a mini-garden, affected plants will have to be removed.