Bottle gardens provide high levels of humidity, making them especially useful for displaying moisture-loving mosses and ferns.
The advantage of growing plants inside a bottle garden or terrarium is that the humidity levels are high, providing the ideal environment for specimens that need moist conditions. All the water given off by the plants during transpiration is condensed on the sides of the glass and runs back into the soil, keeping both the growing medium and the air constantly moist.
- Cover the base with a layer of gravel, which encourages drainage away from the rooting zone.
- Sprinkle the surface with a handful of charcoal to keep the soil fresh. Add a layer of potting soil.
- Gently remove the plants from their pots and position according to how the garden will be viewed, adding more soil around each. Water to settle, adding more soil to bring the level up if it sinks.