Give the gift of a glass garden

Create a unique homemade gift that is sure to gener­ate a smile upon opening and throughout the coming years. Terrarium popularity is trend­ing due to the many benefits these tiny ecosystems provide. A small glass garden is not only a beautiful design element for the home or office but also a gift that supports sustainability and well-being for the creator and recipient.

Consider repurposing clear glass vessels, cloches, mason jars or similar items into a one-of-a-kind terrarium. This self-contained growing system is a low maintenance way for the recipient to be a successful gardener, no matter what their gardening experience.

Just turn the container up­side down and place it on a shal­low planting tray. Glue a deco­rative doorknob or handle on the top for easy access. Or leave it upright and cover it with a clear glass plate or leave it open when growing succulents or air plants inside.

Select a variety of plants of different heights, textures, and colors to create an attrac­tive terrarium garden. Many garden centers now sell small specimens perfect for these mini gardens.

Fill the container with moss, rocks, twigs and ferns if you want to create a more natural garden under glass. Or opt for the more traditional terrarium filled with tropical plants that thrive in high humidity and moist soil in a closed terrarium. Low growing tropical plants such as baby’s tears, creeping fig, moss, and ivies make excel­lent groundcovers. Small speci­mens of dracaenas, crotons, and palms make nice upright fea­tures. Fill in the middle ground with ferns, nerve plants, polka dot plants and more.

Use a cacti and succulent pot­ting mix and leave the top off the terrarium for drought toler­ant cacti and succulents. These plants prefer the lower humid­ity and drier soil that open ter­rariums and this potting mix provide. You can find a variety of colorful succulents with in­teresting shapes and textures to create an attractive display.

Air plants make excellent op­tions for reluctant gardeners. A small glass orb or vase with an opening on top makes an excel­lent container for these plants. No soil needed. Just let the re­cipient know to display it in a bright location out of direct sun­light and mist regularly or soak the plant once a week in tepid water for about thirty minutes.

Once you have the container selected and plants purchased, you are ready to begin assem­bling your terrarium. Consider starting with a layer of stones, twigs, sea glass or sand at the bottom for added color and in­terest. Some gardeners include a layer of charcoal to help ab­sorb any odor.

Consider covering the stone layer with black landscape fab­ric to prevent the potting mix from filtering through and cov­ering up the decorative items on the bottom. Cover this with a layer of well-drained potting mix for tropical plants, and a cacti and succulent mix for the drought tolerant plants. Add contours to the soil level if space allows for added interest.

Once assembled terrariums are relatively easy to manage. Simply moisten the soil and cover.

Provide care instructions and suggest they place their terrarium in a bright location away from direct light. A closed system will only need water­ing a couple times a year and the open succulent terrariums should only be watered when the soil is dry and just enough to moisten the roots but not wa­terlog the soil.

Start now gathering or pur­chasing all you need to create these living holiday gifts. You’ll enjoy creating the gifts as much as the recipients will enjoy re­ceiving them. And you might just have to make an extra one for yourself.