Terrarium Vivarium Aquarium Planetarium

So I finally got round to making a *terrarium... of sorts. (I think the correct term is actually vivarium, but terrarium is a type of vivarium and I prefer the sound of it better, so that's that.)  It was more like a practice run, coz I just had a little bit of time and not all the stuff I wanted/needed, but I'm super stoked with it coz I've been wanting to do it for aaages and now I finally have, or at least made a start. I dig how it looks all luscious and rain-foresty. Also, I love moss. And I love terrariums. And green.
Anyway, Check it out...

So what I actually wanted to do was make the type of terrarium that is completely enclosed, so that it kind of becomes a little ecosystem. A necessary ingredient for that one is activated charcoal (the type used in fishtanks, so you can get it at a pet shop), and I didn't have that on hand so I just did an open one.

They're super simple to do. All you really need is: 

• any container that you like (preferably glass, I think)

• pebbles/small stones

• potting soil

• some plants

Often little figurines/ trinkets/ animal toys are also added in and it looks pretty cool. So all you need to do is have a layer of pebbles at the bottom for drainage, then a layer of potting soil, then arrange your plants in there, and le voila! Some instructions also recommend using sphagnum moss between the pebble and soil layer as it acts as a filter and prevents the soil going into the pebbles too much. For the enclosed ecosystem terrarium, the charcoal layer goes above the pebbles.

Here's a pretty good full tutorial.

There's also different types, like dry desert-looking ones, and more leafy ones... It's up to you, really. 

Here are some awesome examples for inspiration...

one // two // three & four // five // six // seven // eight (the bottom pic)

*terrarium - "a glass container, often a globe, in which plants are grown; A small enclosure or closed container in which selected living plants and sometimes small land animals, such as turtles and lizards, are kept and observed."

If you end up trying out your own, do let me know and send me some pics, and maybe I'll do a post about'em :)