Maidenhair (Adiantum pedatum) Fern in Terrariums

I received a great question from Mariann:

Question: Is there a good way to collect maidenhair spores? would they grow, if dropped over moss in a terrarium?

Answer: I would have to say 'yes' and 'no' to this question. I have collected maidenhair spores by saving the fronds that have the dark colored spores on the underside. To test the viability I sprinkled them over damp dirt in a tray and put a lid on it and a few did grow. They are very delicate translucent little fiddleheads and a lot of fun to watch "sprout."

When the spores grew in the tray I did try dropping some into a bottle terrarium and one grew. However the baby adiantum pedatum are extremely fragile and dislike being moved. I eventually killed it by moving other stuff in the terrarium around the baby maidenhair and upsetting it too much.

If you are interested in growing adiantum pedatum in a small space there is one other option I have discovered that seems more reliable than sprouting the spores. You can cut a small section (maybe .5"x.5") of the matted roots and stems that make up the base of maidenhair clusters and plant this in the soil. These root clusters are extremely durable and will almost always sprout fronds given enough moisture.

Granted I have never had much luck keeping mature maidenhair ferns alive in my terrariums or in my room or in my yard. I see them in the wild in Santa Barbara all the time but I can't seem to keep them healthy for long. I think the adiantum pedatum ferns require more air movement than is provided in bottle terrariums.

Hope that helps!

Mountain Moss Enterprises

Mountain Moss Enterprises is an excellent "fan page" for moss!  They have information on growing moss, photos of moss from around the world and beautiful photos of moss dish gardens and arrangements.  These are truly my people!

www.mountainmoss.com

A New Kind of Terrarium

I think it's safe to say I have explored the limits of terrariums in bottles.  Granted I will always be attracted to new bottle shapes, glass colorations etc. and I will always build new bottle terraria.  But I tried the miniature in little ink-sized bottles, I have my maxi bottle gardens in large wine jugs,  I have some terrariums in large aquariums.  I was itching for a new challenge!

I have been inspired by ikebana and vivaria lately, notably the artful arrangement of wood elements and the concept of mossy logs.  This is my first endeavor along those lines.  More photos soon- I was having lighting issues during this shoot.   

Miniature Orchid Terrarium at SB Orchid Show

This giant terrarium housed miniature orchids at the SB Orchid Show. I am not sure if the orchids were grown in the case or if they were just arranged for display. The case itself was phenomenal- I particularly liked the lighting features running down the side of the case- they really helped illuminate all levels of the display.

The display was full of wonderful epiphyte miniature orchids- I was inspired to pick one up in the shop. The growers mount the epiphytes to a wooden board with wire and some spaghnum moss and the plants just thrive.


I think these were the most stunning of the bunch- such a pretty cornflower blue.


http://www.sborchidshow.com/

Condensation in Terrariums

I have heard varying advice on the appropriate condensation levels for terrariums. Some people say any condensation on the glass is too much- others disagree. This is my recommendation:

1. If your terrarium has an open top- maintain condensation on ONE side of the glass at all times. If there is no condensation it is too dry.

2. If your terrarium has a lid or is closed-top, maintain moisture levels so that condensation is forming on ONE side of the terrarium. If there is no condensation add a few spritzes of distilled water.

3. If condensation is forming on all sides of your closed-top terrarium it is too damp- remove the lid for a few hours (and cover with mesh if you have gnats in the area! See pest post)!

Cycad Garden, Lotusland

Lotusland, Montecito boasts the "unofficial" second largest cycad garden in the world.

These prehistoric plants look like they jumped right out of a children's book about dinosaurs.

Lotusland, Montecito

Fern Grotto, Lotusland

The Fern Garden at Lotusland, Montecito.

The grounds were full of clivia, and they inspired me to pay more attention to the clivia growing in my front yard.  They are special looking plants, but so common in SB.

Moss on a rock- my favorite.

A beautiful begonia.  I actually bought one of these varietals at the Lotusland plant shop.

Lotusland, Monetcito

Miniature Gardens at theweegarden.com

Part miniature gardening and part victorian dollhouse: these whimsical arrangements at theweegarden.com illustrate the magical side of miniature landscapes.

They also have a great list of plants suited to miniature gardening and sell adorable mini garden features.

theweegarden.com

The New Terrarium by Tovah Martin

They had a copy of the book The New Terrarium by Tovah Martin at the shop at Lotusland. I flipped through it and it had some beautiful photos of plants under bell jars and wardian cases. These all looked like the very pruned variety of terrariums and also larger scale ones- and I am more interested in the micros. I may pick up a used copy though!

Japanese Garden, Lotusland

Japanese Garden at Lotusland in Montectio, California. We attended on a very damp, foggy day but the plants were only enhanced. I will try to include photos from each garden on the property. Today: the Japanese Garden.

Bird observing authentic pagoda, one of over 30 in the garden.

Pond through the branches.

Maidenhair fern and natural reflecting pool.

GIANT Terrarium

Check out this giant terrarium at the University of Arizona in Tucson called the Biosphere 2. It uses solar panels and the sun to create this lush landscape in an arid desert.

Just like a giant terrarium!

http://www.b2science.org/

How to Make a Terrarium at Craftzine.com

As I am lagging on getting my "how-to" up on the web- here is a great one I found by Jenny Ryan at the Craftzine.com blog.  She covers most of the steps I would recommend and it's a great "how-to" for making a terrarium in a wide-mouth, uncomplicated container.  

The 1970s Sunset Gardening Terrarium book

I ordered this book used off amazon as it is out of print. I grew up reading Sunset garden books my parents had around and I love all the funky 70s photos. This book has some helpful tips but the photos of the plants best suited for terrariums are all in black and white and difficult to indentify.

3 Week Old Terrariums

Planted terrariums or bottle gardens at the three-week old stage.  At this point I am monitoring any plant growth and keeping a watch out for pests or disease development.

Another key issue at this juncture is moisture levels.  Condensation should be forming on one side of the bottle.  If condensation is forming evenly on all sides it is probably too wet.

This is a great photo of the selaginella spreading it's suckers and getting ready to grow.  

More on Madame Ganna Walska of Lotusland, Santa Barbara

The warm spring air in California seems to be bringing out the garden interest in the general public. The Santa Barbara Independent had a wonderful article on the public and private gardens in the area and had a blurb and this photo of Madame Ganna Walska, visionary behind Lotusland.

Prevention and Dealing with Pests, Fungus and Disease in Terrariums

Time to discuss something I have largely worked out through trial and error: the arrival or manifestation of pests and fungus or disease in terrariums. The white web-y fungus is the most common disease in my terrariums. It seems to affect: moss I have in quarantine that have not been planted, moss in too small and claustrophobic of terrariums and moss that is not receiving some form of air circulation.

The best solution I have found thus far is to remove the offending chunk of moss from my arrangement or terrarium as soon as I spy it. This is why it is good to pay special attention to your newly planted terrariums. If they don't develop the fungus within a month or so- you can probably assume it will be fine (until the addition of a new plant- then the vigilance needs to begin again).
I have heard that a sprtiz of water with one drop of bleach can help prevent its arrrival but I have yet to really try that on healthy-looking specimens.

I exercise the following methods to prevent the appearance of "undesirables:"
1.) rinsing all containers with a bleach/water mix before planting (with a day or two to dry out).

2.) washing my newly harvested moss while I look for pests or unwanted plants in the chunks.

3.) quarantine new specimens in a "holding tank" for a period of time so I can observe their behavior and adaptation to the terrarium environment.

Washing moss for use in terrariums is an essential step - especially if you are too impatient to quarantine and observe new plants for a while. Make sure to really scrub around in the moss chunks in clean water and remove any weeds, rock chunks, seeds, insect eggs, insects etc.

Two other examples of unwanted pests - a seedling that sprouted in an arrangement and is clearly not a wanted plant- probably a weed. This scenario can illustrate the importance of being familiar with all the plants you planted in an arrangement and how their offshoots or baby plants will look. The pest on the right is a wee wee snail that popped up in my bottle garden. Probably a stow-away. Cute as he is- can't have him hanging around.

Another set of undesirables is gnats - which can speedily overtake the damp and warm soil in a terrarium. I normally try to prevent this by washing my moss, having a quarantine period for all new plants and keeping open-topped terariums covered with a piece of cheesecloth and a rubberband.

A beneficial stow-away worth mentioning: earthworms. An earthworm or two is an excellent and welcome addition to a terrarium - especially large terrariums that will provide the earthworm a nice large habitat. My grand wine jug terrarium is home to a big fella and I am always happy to see him pop up when I am doing maintence in it.

Moss Dish Garden

Moss Acres

I love the website Moss Acres as they sell a variety of mosses instead of just lumping them all together.  Unfortunately the order sizes are much too large for my usage- I wish they sold mini sampler sets or something.  Like a paint chip strip but of mosses!

Something new they have been discussing on their site is the concept of vertical moss "walls" as well as moss roofs.  I wish I lived in a climate that could handle this!  How amazing.  How wonderful would it be if cold corporate interiors and roofs all looked like this.

Chutney the Beta Fish

Chutney is my fancy beta fish.  He lives in a pretty nice little vase and he has his own pagoda and aquarium plant.  

I have had many beta fishes over the years and Chutney has been one of the best.  He is very responsive to my movements around the room.

I don't know what the plant is - I bought it in a set of dried rhizomes from the pet store and this is the only one that sprouted.  Since then I have purchased two other sets of the same dried bulbs and no other plants have grown.  

Wine Bottle Terrarium

This is one of my older terrariums in a wine bottle. It's lasted for about a year and has really filled in. In this photo you can really see the layers of gravel, charcoal, dried moss and soil in the bottle.

My sister has been asking for a terrarium for ever now. I was hesitant to give her a terrarium that hadn't properly settled for fear it would dry out or die or get diseased. However as this one has lasted so long I am proud to give it to her.

The sword fern [nephrolepis cordifolia] is doing so well that runner plants are growing off the parent plant and on the side of the bottle. Some of the older fronds are turning brown and dying but I think the decomposition will not harm the eco balance in the bottle.