Hi there,

Welcome! I'm pretty new to GardenWeb too.

Your terrarium sounds very cool. Re: the topsoil from the woods - you never know what kind of "goodies" come with dirt from the outside world!

I have a terrarium where I planted a single peperomia with some dirt from the yard... and now there are clovers and moss growing along with the peperomia. I really like what happened, but I can foresee times where items appear when I'd rather they don't!

Here's another terrarium I created - I prefer to build terrariums that have just a few focal points:
{{gwi:1269679}}
{{gwi:1269680}}

Link: Globe Pedestal Terrarium

If you have a chance, post some pictures of your creations. I'd like to see them!

Thanks,
Jeremy

Here is a link that might be useful: Jeremy Gross Plant Projects

Greetings, JoD and Jeremy!

Please do keep any of the following comments or critiques for what they are intended to be -- constructive 'criticisms' or well meant advice.

JoD, just a 'heads up', do be keep in mind that you can very easily get unwanted inhabitants by utilizing materials from the great outdoors. Also many of your outdoor plants will likely have issues being indoors year round. Plants from temperate zones typically require a cool to cold winter dormancy to remain vigorous.

Also, be very careful of what you "harvest" from the wild. For example, in many states (and I believe yours is one of them) it is ILLEGAL to remove trilliums from the wild. Furthermore in the case of trilliums, they do not take to root disturbance well, their soil requirements are quite specific, and a cold winter dormancy is a MUST. If you cannot provide all of these conditions and the rest of its needs, you are consigning it to an early grave.

Your bonsai idea, while nifty in theory will, unfortunately, present a number of very real challenges.
1) As mentioned above, many temperate plants need a cool to cold dormancy. In the case of temperate trees this is a requirement not an option for the tree to remain healthy. A cedar is no exception.
2) Excellant air circulation is also mandatory -- something which can be difficult to accomplish in a terr.
3) Lighting will be a major issue. Trees have very high light requirements. Trying to providing sufficient light without overheating your tank will be highly problematic.
4) If you do solve all of the above issues, then there is at least one more cautionary note I wish to give you -- plan on needing to leave the tree in it's pot. To keep a tree in bonsai form, you will need to regularly prune both the branches and the roots. Assuming you are able to solve issues 1-3 and the tree is not in a pot, it will send its roots throughout the tank which would make root pruning difficult to impossible.

I hope I have't come across as a 'wet blanket', but in addition to believing in responsible plant and animal husbandry, I'd like to help you avoid many of the common mistakes folks make.

Nice terr idea, Jeremy. Out of curiosity, which plant are you refering to as "baby tears"? The fittonia is in the middle of course, the peperomia to either side I assume and the one at 12 o'clock is a pothos. Not sure where the "baby tears" are.

Btw, don't get bummed if it takes awhile for responses. This is often a rather slow forum. Problem is, folks only have the space for a limited # of terrs. So after making theirs, there often isn't much to update or inquire about so they don't come back very often.

Jeremy-I looked at the page, I love the light bulb terrs. I saw one in the background I'm waiting for a light to go out so I can make myself one! I'm trying to get pics but I have to find my camera!

paul-It's illegal to pick trilliums only in Michigan, Minnesota and Canada, that's only if you're picking off of public property or without permission.
This plant (the red one anyway) is abundant here, the woods are covered with them.
I think it's only the white trillium too, mine are red and are doing quite well. I looked it up to be sure.

I was planning on transplanting them late spring, except for the christmas fern and mosses. The terrarium is too humid for them so I'll be doing that sooner than later though.

I was aware of the critters that I got, isopods, worms, spiders and some others.
I've collected native plants before, I guess I should have said I'm getting back into terrariums? I've never really taken it as far as getting something tropical, which is what I'm wanting to do once I transplant these into my garden.
As for my cedar I think it too would be hit by the humidity, but I was planning on keeping the pot slightly buried then I'd do a dig up and repot in a few years for trimming. I could also set it outdoors for it's dormancy period. I think I would be able to enjoy my tree better if it were out in the open though so this is out.

That's for the comments!

Here is a link that might be useful: Trilliums

Welcome to the forum. And to terrrarium keeping.
I can well understand the temptation for keeping outdoorsy plants in a terrarium. Here is a series of links to the man that first introduced me to such a kind of terrarium keeping.

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA01.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA02.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA03.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA04.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA05.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA06.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA07.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA08.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA09.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA10.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA11.jpg
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s184/jwcimage/Arthur%20Eames%20Allgrove/AEA12.jpg

Also I would recommend that you try smaller plants. Plants like the Trillium are just too big for small terrariums and would really make it all look rather lopsided. i would recommend Selaginella as these can be put outside and brought inside over night or during winter months though some I have outside have handled into the high 30s quite well.

Hi there, jarofdirt! I'm new to terrariums too, but have the good fortune of having an excellent botanical garden in my city which recently had a giant plant sale. I made a bee-line to the bonsai people at the sale, because I have a very large jar that I thought would look handsome with a bonsai inside of it.
The bonsai reps there were the best I could hope for - they were members of the local bonsai society. Right away upon mention of a terrarium, they told me that the major mistakes that ALWAYS kill bonsai are keeping them indoors, keeping them too moist, and keeping them in a place with no airflow. They emphasized that these are trees, after all - they grow outside. Seems like common sense, of course, but bonsai are so altered from their natural state that I think I was interpreting them as houseplants in my imagination. So their thoughts were no way, most bonsai just won't thrive in a terrarium.
They did note that a ficus bonsai is the best bonsai for indoors - after all, ficus trees are very commonly found in homes. They weren't sure if they would thrive in a terrarium, but it sounds like if any bonsai has a chance it's the ficus. You might want to check around and see if anyone online has successfully done this.