London, U.K.-based author as well as eco-friendly thumb Emma Hardy shares a DIY job from her latest book, The winter garden (Cico Books, $20).

Terrariums are a lovely method to create little gardens inside the house, as well as are frequently utilized to grow succulents as well as ferns. Displaying flowering plants in an open-topped glass jar produces a quite indoor garden that will bring color as well as beauty into your home.

You will need:

Large glass jar with a wide neck

Gravel

Ground charcoal (pet stores should stock this)

Potting compost

Scoop

Helleborus niger (choose an alpine range with a little root ball), viola x wittrockiana (pansy), humata tyermanii (bunny fern). *Or, ask your regional plant store what’s in season in your region.

Moss

Soft paintbrush

Step 1: clean as well as dry the jar thoroughly before you start. carefully location a layer of gravel in the bottom of the jar (adding it in handfuls rather than pouring it in, to ensure that it does not shatter the glass). The gravel should be about 3⁄4 inches (2 cm) thick as well as evenly spread over the bottom of the jar.

Step 2: Sprinkle charcoal powder over the gravel, totally covering it. This will assist to take in odors from the potting compost, ensuring that the terrarium does not smell.

Step 3: inspect that the potting compost is moist before using—water it if necessary, letting it drain somewhat before utilizing it. add the potting compost to the jar, making
 a layer about 2 inches (5 cm) thick. add it utilizing a little scoop or your hand rather than pouring it in, so that
 it does not make as well much mess inside the jar.

Step 4: Take the hellebore out of its pot as well as carefully eliminate any type of excess soil from around the roots. Make a shallow dip in the potting compost inside the jar as well as location the hellebore in it, spreading the roots out a bit as well as anchoring it in location with a bit more potting compost if necessary, to ensure that it sits firmly upright.

Step 5: Take the pansy from its pot as well as plant in the jar in the exact same way, putting it toward the back of the jar, next to the hellebore.

Step 6: add the fern, once again eliminating excess soil from the roots, as well as plant toward the front of the jar, adding more potting compost if necessary. firm around all three plants to ensure that they sit firmly in the compost.

Step 7: Tear the sheet of moss into pieces as well as location them on the surface of the potting compost, around the plants. Make sure that all the potting compost is covered, adding smaller pieces of moss if necessary.

Step 8: utilizing the soft paintbrush, clean up the inside of the jar as well as clean any type of bits of potting compost from the leaves as well as flowers to neat them up.

Aftercare
Make sure that the potting compost stays damp however not as well wet (stick your finger into the compost to check), watering sparely when necessary. keep the terrarium inside your home in a light area as well as deadhead the pansy regularly. With the right conditions, the plants should keep flowering for a number of weeks or even months, however the foliage will look lovely too.