DIY Bedroom Glass Garden

Decorating a bedroom with plants has many benefits. For this reason, many people opt for plants as bedroom decoration. However, it can be a struggle to keep these plants alive, since a bedroom isn’t the best habitat for plants to thrive in. The solution? A bedroom glass garden.

The Mechanics

A glass garden, more commonly known as a terrarium, creates the perfect environment for plants in the bedroom. These small enclosed environments almost act like a greenhouse and are currently all the rage. Heat from sunlight is trapped inside, and slowly let out, this creates an ideal habitat for most plants. Additionally, terrariums only need little water, since the semi-enclosed environment translates to not much water vapor being released.

Materials

• Clear glass container
• Potting soil
• Moss (optional)
• Your choice of succulents
• A shovel
• Scissors
• Gloves (optional)

Thrift your glass container from a second hand store, or your very own kitchen! We chose an old vase (pictured) and used it in an alternative way… When choosing potting soil, be sure to make use of fertile soil, enriched with lots of nutrients for your plants. Nutrient rich soil provide “food” for your glass garden plants to thrive from.

Step 1: Choosing plants

When choosing plants, take the above explained environment, that terrariums create, into consideration. Choose plants that thrive in a high temperature, high humidity environment. Since a terrarium is also a smaller object, it is best to choose slow growing plants, to prevent overgrowth.

Bearing size and preferred habitat in mind, make use of the following plants in your glass garden:

• Succulents
• Ferns
• Dwarf palms
• Carnivorous plants

We opted for a desert garden, and achieved this look with lots of different succulents. Be sure to incorporate a variety of color and size with the choice of plants for a dynamic look.

Step 2: Prepare container

After you’ve chosen your plants, it is time to prepare the planting ground. Firstly, clean the container by removing any old debris or chemicals with a good rinse of soap and water. Dry it off and choose your placement. We decided to flip our container on its side for a different approach.

Step 3: Add soil

Next up is probably the most important part – creating the breeding ground for your plants.

If you have chosen plants that need lots of drainage, be sure to create drainage levels with pebbles and sand. We just added potting soil, since succulents are low maintenance and do not need super special care.

As mentioned previously, it is important to opt for nutrient rich potting soil for your terrarium. Carefully add potting soil to your container with a shovel or scoop.

Step 4: Plant

Once you’ve prepared your container, it’s time to prepare you plants. Give them a good rinse from all impurities. Furthermore, snip off all dead leaves and excess stalk from your plants, to keep them looking fresh.

Place your plants carefully in the terrarium, ensuring that their roots are firmly pressed down. Add variety with shape and size by placing one big ‘centerpiece’ and complimenting that with smaller plants.

Step 5: Final touches

Finally, after you’ve added plants to your glass garden, it is time to round it all off with a few finishing touches. In addition to plants, add small rocks and pebbles for a complete look. Feel free to also add small decorations to your creative hearts content! We added moss as decorative final touches in our glass garden.

Once you’ve finished decorating your terrarium you are almost done! Now go ahead and water those plant babies of yours. As a result, your plants adapt to their new environment in no time at all!

Caring for your glass garden

The only remaining factor to take into consideration with your glass garden would be taking care of it. Follow these tips when looking after your plants.

• Water your plants every 3-6 weeks with a sprayer until the soil is moist. Alternatively, have a feel at the soil once a week. If it’s dry, feel free to quench your plants’ thirst.
• Most terrariums work best in indirect or semi-direct sunlight. This ensures warm, but not scorching conditions, perfect for your terrarium plants.
• As soon as you notice dead leaves (or even a whole plant) remove it immediately, to prevent a rotting terrarium.
• Keep an eye out for signs of deficiencies like discoloration of leaves, wilting (despite regular watering) and stunted growth. If you notice your plants showing these signs, simply add plant food to the water used for watering the terrarium. Purchase plant food at any nursery or some grocery stores.
• If you notice that any of your plants are infected by a bug, treat the affected plant with insecticidal soap. Add pebbles to prevent small gnats from moving in to your terrarium. If the infestation persists, it is best to remove all affected plants to prevent further contamination.
• Lastly, keep your terrarium neat by regularly grooming your plants. This can be achieved by snipping away any overgrowth and dead leaves. Additionally, wipe down the glass walls on the inside of your glass garden every so often. This will keep your glass garden clear and shiny, optimizing it’s decorative use.