Yo, what's going on SerpaSquad!
Tanner here and I'm back with something that's been widely requested,
a terrarium built around herbs.
Garden centers and box stores are carrying them again, so now seemed like the perfect time.
I don't know about you, but I really enjoy cooking and having fresh herbs
on hand can make all the difference.
Let's get to work.
With the nature of this project, it makes sense to start with the plants.
I selected herbs I frequently use including Basil, Cilantro, Oregano, Parsley, and Rosemary.
The challenge is that these plants require slightly different conditions to thrive.
This typically isn't the case with other terrariums because
I can curate a selection of plants that work together.
I don't have that luxury with this build because these plants are being
used for utility first and aesthetics second.
To be as methodical as possible, I made a table to compare everything.
You'll notice that overall they have similar requirements.
However, Basil and Rosemary prefer higher humidity and soil dry out between watering.
My options are to make two terrariums or a single enclosure that's partitioned.
My initial plan was to make two separate terrariums in these relatively large containers.
They're tall enough to accommodate the plants long-term,
but they can probably only include a single plant.
I'll still use one for the sake of demonstration,
but I decided it would be more practical to use something like this Wardian Case.
Check out the linked video to see how I made it.
I built this container to address some of the challenges I just discussed.
I put a divider in the middle to create two different environments in a single container.
One side will house Basil and Rosemary, and the other Cilantro, Oregano, and Parsley.
I also modified it since last week's video.
I drilled two holes on the right side for ventilation and to cut back on humidity.
Another item I'll design around the plants is the substrate.
I'll mix up Organic Raised Bed Soil, Orchid Bark, Sand, Charcoal, and Perlite.
I combined them together as follows, 4 parts of soil,
1.5 parts bark, 1 part perlite, ½ part sand, and 1 part carbon.
This mix will drain well, while also retaining some moisture.
In fact, it's very similar to the mix I'd normally use, but with different components.
Now we can move onto the the false bottom.
For my terrariums I'm going to use Leca.
These are a good option because they're absorbent and will minimize standing water.
Alternatively, you could use something like gravel,
but I'd recommend using these if you can find them.
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We'll also need a drainage barrier to minimize
the amount of substrate that passes into the false bottom.
I'll use Fine Window Screen.
I cut the screen out slightly larger than the size the of partitioned
areas in the Wardian Case and the diameter of the glass container.
After that, I went on to add the drainage layer.
I added roughly a 1” deep layer to each section.
I placed the screen over top of this.
I cut them out slightly larger than the enclosures because you can curl up the edges.
This creates a little bowl which holds substrate.
I built up roughly 4” of it. If some gets into the false bottom, it's not a big deal.
We just want to keep the majority of it out to discourage anaerobic conditions.
Now we can get the plants situated in their new home.
I carefully removed the pots and loosened the root balls.
I dug holes in the substrate and placed the basil in the background.
These grow much quicker than the rosemary and can get quite tall.
I planted the rosemary in front of this.
Again, both of these plants prefer similar conditions,
so it made sense to bunch them together.
I continued on the other side.
I planted the cilantro in the background for the same reasons as the basil.
They'll get tall and grow fast.
I put the parsley in front of this.
I finished it off with the oregano in the foreground.
I did the same thing in the smaller container.
I dug a hole and placed a parsley in the center.
Let's get these plants some water.
I think it's easiest if you have a pressurized mister like this one, which has a long nozzle.
With this, I can water the entire system directly at the roots.
This makes it's easy to get the right amount of water where it needs to be,
without getting excess on the leaves.
Additionally, since it's a semi-closed system,
this doesn't require as much was a something like a potted plant.
My guess is that the right side will need watered
about once a week and the other every ten days or so.
I'll have to dial that in once I do things in real time.
There you have it, my take on an edible herb terrarium.
This is different that others I've done because there's really no design involved.
I don't know if that's what you expected, but the reality is that this is a utilitarian piece.
Regardless, plants look good and add life to a space even if they aren't scaped.
Just having the Wardian Case along with the other house
plants looks good enough in my mind and even better than I had expected.
This is a great location because I can utilize natural sunlight.
If I had put it elsewhere, I would had use a grow light.
I like this piece because it's an awesome way to bring nature indoors,
while simultaneously getting closer to my food.
I really like using fresh herbs, but unfortunately we can't use the garden year round.
This solves that issue.
I'm sure it will look even better as the plants mature.
The cool thing is though that they'll never outgrow the space since they're always being used.
That's another reason why I decided to go with a Wardian Case.
It looks cool and makes it easy to access the plants.
You could always make one like this to start though.
Anyway, I'm sure there are things I could've done differently, but I'll get it dialed in over time.
Till then, I've got to get dinner going.
Until next time SerpaSquad, take care and peace!