38 Fantastic Moss Terrarium Ideas You Can Have At Home

Have you ever wished you could bring the sense of garden peacefulness inside? Moss terrariums give the sensation of bringing a piece your garden indoors. They add a focal point to an empty table and give a mini zen garden effect to any space.

Terrariums are a great way to add visual textures and layers into a room. Each terrarium needs a beautiful glass display case. Sometimes a bell-shaped glass case, a mason jar, a fishbowl, the options are almost limitless. The only exception is colored glass as it may block light and hinder the growth of your plants.

To craft your terrarium, you will need:

• Glass container.
• Spoons or a funnel for pouring, and scooping.
• Pebbles, sea glass, or marbles.
• Sheet moss, carpet moss, or Sphagnum.
• Soil.
• Spray bottle.
• Light to Shade in the spot the terrarium will live.

Now to layer the inside of your container, you will first lay the rocks. The rock layer gives shape to the terrain inside your terrarium and aerates the soil. If you make this layer thin, it will overwater your plants, to thick and it will make your garden look crowded. Adding depressions and shape to this layer will pay off in the final product.

Next, place your soil. Remember to add shape to create visual interest. Lastly, place your moss, it does not have to fill the top layer, leaving some soil uncovered gives a focal spot, and room for your plants to grow.

Maintenance is as simple as the occasional spritz of water. If your container is one that closes, be sure to monitor the moisture so as not to overwater. Closed container terrariums do need airflow, or the bottle will start to cloud.   Below are some pictures to inspire your creative energy.

Here's a post about hair cap moss for your garden maybe you'll find it interesting!

1. Choose a Theme

One fun idea for your moss terrarium is to pick a theme that mirrors the room where it will be displayed. Choose a couple of items to tie the subject of the moss garden into the room.  Or craft a terrarium that captures a celebratory event. For example, if you are going to a baby shower, you can give the Mom-to-be the gift of a stork -themed garden, like the one above.

2. Options Everywhere

Does a friend at work love chickens? Why not give them a little oasis of chickens to keep on their desk, and provide them with something to smile about each day. Half the fun of making a terrarium is picking out what to put in it.

3. Make Way For Ducklings

Yes, it's a popular kids book by Robert McCloskey. A favorite of children all over. So, why not give them their little garden to mist, and enjoy.

Create a terrarium inspired by a favorite children's story to get your kids excited about their mini-garden. You can give them their own little garden to mist and enjoy.

4. Light Bulb Moments

Did you believe us when we said: "The options are almost limitless."? Perhaps you will have a light bulb moment in choosing the perfect container for your moss terrarium garden.

5. Mosses Need Air Circulation

Many people have this idea that you can close the terrarium and forget about it. Moss requires good drainage and air circulation to thrive. It is suggested that you leave the lid open during the day and only close it at night.

6. Fairy Garden Magic

One of our favorite moss terrarium ideas is a fairy garden.  Use your imagination and creativity to soar on the wings of fairy friends. If fairies aren't your style, you can create a little hobbit village.

7. Anywhere Really

One of the beautiful things about terrariums is they can add sophistication to almost any space. Basements typically don't have enough light, unless you use a grow light. Otherwise, go for it, and brighten up that space.

8. Layers And Natural Foliage

Take an ordinary glass jar, and make it into something amazing just by adding layers of natural texture and colors. You can use pinecones, fallen branches, small plants, or succulents to add visual appeal and a sense of age to your moss terrarium.

9. Orchids Galore

Adding an orchid to your moss terrarium gives it a splash of color, engaging the eye and brightening the room.

10. Containers Can Catch The Eye

Deciding whether to highlight the bottle or the garden is one of the fun parts of choosing how to build your garden. Choose a unique jar or bottle to house your moss garden.

11. Small Details Matter

It is the little details that matter in a terrarium garden. Adding just a touch of color, like the butterflies used here, and texture changes the look entirely. This also adds to your terrarium crafting credentials.

12. Mini Gardens

Let your kiddos collect the materials and create a terrarium garden where you can see all of the layers. Start with a layer of small stones and shells to provide drainage, then soil, then layer on the moss. On top of that add your decorative items, whether they are stones, leaves, sticks, or small plants.

13. One To Ten

 

A fun thing about terrariums is that you can keep a theme, but make each one slightly different. They make exceptional centerpiece items for a wedding or shower. Or create several different ones to line a windowsill for a low maintenance and creative plant display.

14. Water Features

If you are feeling particularly crafty, you might even make one with a water feature. Try highlighting the rainforest and its necessity to earth sustainability.

15. Lighting Is Important

Pay attention to the light in the area where you want your terrarium to live. If lighting is a problem, feel free to improvise some illumination. You can add fairy lights, or you can purchase terrarium kits that have lights in the lids.

16. Size Doesn't Matter

 

In the case of terrariums, at least, size doesn't matter. The smallest jam jar can be used, all the way up to a large pickle jar. Just make sure you adjust your layering levels accordingly. Remember, moss doesn't like stagnant wet environments.

17. Space Isn't An Issue in Terrarium Gardens

Tiny or large you can build a terrarium garden to fit just about any space. Use one to fill a small corner of a desk or as the centerpiece of a table. These little gardens pack a punch visually no matter what size.

18. Shape Is Up To Your Discretion

The specifics of your container isn't a limitation in this case, because you get to design the space inside the container. Diagonals, straight lines, curvy levels, it is all up to you.

19. LED Night Lights

What better way to give your room a sense of night time than to light up your moss garden and highlight your design? Moss typically thrives in filtered light. Glass amplifies the sun's rays so terrariums need to be placed away from direct sunlight.

20. Glass Shadow Cubes

Another enjoyable idea about terrarium gardens is that you can get a 360-degree view of the garden. Not just the view from the walking path. Use yours to create a story with creative touches, like these tiny people.

21. Innovation And Creation

Terrariums that are well-designed and crafted are a reflection of the innovation and creativity of those living in that space. The container can add volumes to the design of a room, and the plants add a bit of growth and living creation.

22. Color Makes Your Garden Pop

 

Adding color to your terrarium garden can tie in the colors of a room, match the outside garden colors in with the inside garden colors. Here an antique carafe is filled with layers that mimic the feel of a seaside home by using blue and white sand layers for the base, then cream colored pebbles, gray gravel, and finally, a mass of moss with a small cottage tucked into the side.

23. Nature Inside

 

Adding a few well-placed figures in your terrarium is a great way to add color and visual pulls. It is a way to bring the outdoors in for the times when you cannot be outside.

24. Garden While Preserving Memories

Terrariums are great for preserving some of those favorite childhood memories. They are an adult way to still play with beloved childhood toy figures.

25. Terrariums And Other Plants

Moss terrariums pair very well with other dwarf plants to give height to the space in the container. Sometimes just the moss itself isn't enough to fill the space.

26. Mushrooms And Lamposts

Mushrooms, lamposts, rocks, pebble paths, all of these items set the scene for your terrariums little world. Reenact a favorite scene from a book for your library or create a mini world all your own. Moss terrariums are flexible enough for all kinds of ideas.

27. Remember Your Favorite Place

Make a terrarium garden that reminds you of your favorite vacations spot. Perhaps even use seashells or souvenirs from your trip.

28. Hanging Terrariums

If space is an issue that keeps you from building your indoor terrarium garden, then think outside the jar! Make a terrarium that you can hang out of a small stopped bottle and an air plant.

29. Changing the View

A well-designed terrarium will take full advantage of the 360-degree view. It will have a new visual draw from each vantage point, and maybe even some hidden gems that you only see if you take the time to view the garden entirely.

30. Display Matters

In a terrarium as with any garden, the display matters. So, don't just build it, water it and throw it in a space. But be sure that it adds interest to the location you are putting it. What is the color scheme? Can you build those colors into the garden?

31. Not Limited to Soil

Moss will grow on a variety of surfaces, given the right conditions, so no soil is required to craft a stunning woodland display, such as the one above. Use dried moss, logs, stones, and other found items to make a snapshot of the forest floor in a tank.

32. Mist it Lightly

Mist your terrarium lightly, every two to four weeks. Just a soft spritz, as moss likes moisture but not puddles.

33.  Frugal Gardening

A benefit of a moss terrarium garden is that it doesn't need extensive care. An upcycled jar or container, and a few layers of rocks, soil, and plants, and ta-da. You have a beautiful garden in our home.

34. Bonsai

Bonsai projects and moss are complimentary. Add a fun new challenge by making a bonsai terrarium.

35. Waterfalls

Is there anything more zen than the sound of gently flowing water? Instructables.com has a great tutorial on how to make a water feature in your terrarium.

36. Garden In A Jar

A moss garden is a great gift to give, especially to that person that has everything else or that likes to live a clean, sustainable lifestyle.

37. Terrariums Are Magic

Done well and cared for consistently terrariums are magical little gardens you can hold in one hand. Use tiny details to set a scene that could come from a fairy tale.

38. Making A Conversation Piece

No matter the garden scene you wish to create, each terrarium is a conversation starter and a living piece of art.