Terrarium

Last weekend, Kabir and I worked on this joint project : Terrarium for his dinosaurs.  We spent our Saturday, shopping together in the nursery and a Pet Store(where we found most of the stuff needed).  Once we had everything, it was only a matter of minutes to put it all together. However, Kabir could not make up his mind on where to place his dinosaurs. Eventually, he decided that all his dinosaurs were herbivorous, so they had to be placed next to a plant(not that there was any other option). Then he spent rest of the evening feeding his dinosaurs of all sizes, the plants in the terrarium, in the process of which he toppled the container. So, we got a chance to redo the whole process. Fun of doing a project with a toddler.

Here are the directions I followed from Jill Fehrenbacher. This is another link which I found helpful.

Stuff you would need

Glass Bowl of any shape

Small Pebbles

Activated Charcoal(Pet Store)

Sphagnum Moss

Plants

Big Rocks and Fauna for decoration.

Directions
1.Start with a glass vessel in which you want to make a terrarium.  I used a large, clear, sphere-shaped glass bowl which I found at Michaels.You can get creative here - glass bulb, a hanging terrarium.. etc
2. Add a 1 1/2″ layer of small pebbles on the floor of the container.
3. Cover the pebbles with a thin layer of loose charcoal, which will help keep the water in your garden from stagnating.
4. Cover the charcoal with an inch layer of sphagnum moss. Look in the aquarium/terrarium section of a pet store for the pebbles, charcoal, and moss.
5. Now add enough potting soil so that the total contents occupy about 1/4 of the container. There will be some settling of the layers.
6. Choose small or miniature plant varieties so they do not overtake the container. The plants that have found to be the best suited are asparagus fern, mistletoe fig, and succulent aloe varieties. Add rocks, driftwood, etc to create the atmosphere of your choice. I added Dinosaurs and a wood Turtle.



Happy Making!