Do.It.Myself Terrarium

January 9, 2013

It's my first DIM (Do It Myself) project on the blog! For me this is exciting, because I make a list of things I would like to do and somehow barely manage to really do any of them. Today I did though, and if feels great, especially since I have been in a bed recovering from foot surgery for the past six days. In between the multiple naps I have been taking (in one day mind you) I get a little restless. This afternoon my energy was up and luckily I had collected everything I needed for my special project before surgery. With help from my mom and sister, I was finally ready to attempt my very first terrarium.

Now I have been wanting a terrarium for a while and since Pete and I have decided we want the freshness of plants scattered around our apartment, we collectively decided this would be our first Maryland DIM project. And we would have not just one terrarium, but two. Once back in Maryland, Pete and I will find a nook with reflective sunlight for our lovely succulent-filled glass bowls, which will complement the apartment's fresh/simple/cozy theme. I cannot wait to get to Maryland with this terrarium (and to put together the other one too)!

Items Needed:
  • Glass bowl
  • Succulents
  • River Rocks/Decorative Rocks (to allow for water drainage)
  • Dirt
  • Water

This is the chosen bowl. Make sure when you pick out your bowl that it is wide and deep enough to support your plants.
These rocks were gotten from a local home improvement store. Find whatever rocks suit you.
Put enough rocks in the bottom to measure a depth of approximately 1 inch.
Next is adding the dirt foundation. For this, you want between 1 to 1.5 inches of dirt.
The succulents we chose came in a group of three. So I needed to transplant them from their original pot. I used a plastic knife to detach the dirt from the pot's sides.
Once uprooted, I put the rest of the soil from the original pot into the bowl. 
A big enough hole needs to be made to situate the succulents into the dirt. Then gently place them in the bowl; the leaves are fragile so be careful! 
I arranged them to fit nicely in their new home. 
Watering the plants is important, but remember not to over water them. 
The last step was adding some more decorative rocks to the top of the soil (this is optional). These rocks came on top of the succulents in their original pot. 
Voila! A terrarium is born & I'm in love with the colors! 
This turned out just as I imagined, and I cannot wait to make another one! 
Happy Terrarium Creating!!