Terrariums Reimagined: Mini Worlds Made in Creative Containers

By Kat Geiger

Make glass-enclosed gardens using creatively repurposed containers—includes extensive photos and two dozen projects to try.

Add style, nature and a touch of whimsy to your home with one-of-a-kind terrariums. Terrariums Reimagined shows how to make and maintain arid deserts, flowering jungles, and lush landscapes in unique containers, such as:

• Milk Bottles

• Mason Jars

• Tea Pots

• Wine Bottles

• Whiskey Bottles

• Light Bulbs

• Glass Soda Bottles

• Decorative Vases

Artist and gardener Kat Geiger’s unique approach to designing mini gardens in glass makes it easy to turn imaginative ideas into stylish showpieces, blooming décor, and fabulous gifts. This book provides everything you need to know about making terrariums, whether you’re a novice or an expert, including step-by-step photos, helpful gardening advice, and tips and tricks on how to find the perfect repurposed vessels for your creations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jun 25, 2013
• ISBN: 9781612432137

Book preview

Introduction

I was trapped. From a long line of gardeners, farmers, and horticulturists, I needed to get my hands in the dirt. But alas, I lived in a loft with zero outdoor space. Raised vegetable beds were not exactly an option, nor were silk plants (the most abhorrent of all plant species). With two large windows, plenty of indirect light, and far too much time on my hands, I began to search the Internet for answers. A brief search led me to terrariums: enclosed or mostly enclosed environments containing plants, mosses, and other landscape materials. So it began: my obsession with these tiny little worlds inside glass globes, bottles, and jars.

It took little time to realize that very few terrariums were created in unique containers. It seemed the majority of terrariums were created in open-top jars and fishbowls. With the designer in me crying out for mercy from this monotony, my quest to create terrariums in unique, space-saving containers began. With design and sustainability at the top of my priority list, recycled, handblown, and locally crafted vessels became my little black dresses: go-to containers for every terrarium. The one major element that makes a terrarium stand out from the average Joe (or Jane) houseplant is the vessel in which it is housed, so that vessel must be unique.

The vessel creates the boundaries for the landscape and turns an ordinary plant into a piece of art. This book explores several different types of vessels. From giant mouth-blown vessels to tequila bottles, there is a terrarium vessel appropriate for every personality and budget.

Thanks for this book are due in part to Dr. Nathaniel Ward, the inventor of the Wardian case, the original terrarium vessel. Although many people believe that terrariums can be traced all the way back to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Dr. Ward is responsible for the Victorian-era resurgence in the popularity of growing plants inside glass. He discovered that the plants he was unable to sustain in his outdoor garden thrived in the humid, protected environment of a glass container. This discovery was quite by accident while Dr. Ward was studying the life cycle of a particular type of insect and his habitat began growing ferns. As a result, creating tiny environments that maintained a steady temperature became a popular way to transport plants to and from the British colonies in the Victorian era.

Hundreds of years later, here we are still enjoying the same pastime as Queen Victoria. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Although we are no longer transporting plants to England from the colonies, there are many reasons people enjoy keeping a terrarium at home. So why, you ask, should you keep a terrarium? Here are just a few reasons:

01 Space is limited. City-dwellers are often looking for creative space solutions. Whereas a houseplant takes up a large amount of space, a terrarium takes up very little space and can even be hung from the wall or ceiling.

02 Low maintenance. Once established, a terrarium requires very little care, sometimes only monthly watering or less.

03 Plant protection. Keeping kitty out of the plants can be a tricky operation at best. When the plants are inside a glass container, however, they are not only protected from pets, but also from the heater and dry air.

04 Easy like Sunday mornin’. Even the blackest of thumbs can successfully grow an entire landscape