HANGING PLANT TERRARIUM WITH FEATHER MOSS
A glistening, moss- and lichen-filled raindrop suspended in mid-air is a symbol of the life-sustaining precipitation that drenches the lush, verdant rainforest. The combination of black sand, white pebbles, and green moss gives it an elemental feeling, like a time capsule.
Adapted from the Rainforest Raindrop Terrarium in Terrarium Craft: Create 50 Magical, Miniature Worlds
by Amy Bryant Aiello and Kate Bryant, published Timber Press. Photograph by Kate Baldwin.
Materials and Tools:
- 1 hanging teardrop vase (6 inches tall)
- Jute twine for suspending teardrop
- Eye-hook or other ceiling attachment
- 1 cup hematite sand
- 1 sprig old man’s beard lichen (Dolichousnea longissima)
- 1 sprig feather moss (Ptilium species)
- Smattering white pebbles
Step 1
Clean terrarium glass inside and out.
Step 2
Attach jute twine to glass and hang before filling to make sure length is correct.
Step 3
Pour hematite sand into teardrop and give it a gentle shake.
Step 4
Coil a sprig of old man’s beard lichen into soft ball and poke it through the opening so it sits toward the back.
Step 5
Add a sprig of feather moss and drop white pebbles over some of the bare hematite sand toward the front.
Step 6
Care:
Old man’s beard lichen and feather moss both appreciate a bit of indirect light (low or bright is okay). Spritz the living elements a couple of times a week—once a week if in lower light or a cooler location. Or skip the watering and just allow them to dry.
Step 7
Tip:
This terrarium can be suspended and then filled, or filled and then suspended. If you fill it before suspending it, try setting it on a feather pillow or blanket—or in a rubber kitchen bowl to contain excess materials. A dexterous pinkie finger or a piece of bent wire or pipe cleaner are good tools for manipulating pebbles or fluffing moss.
