365 : snowy mossy rock

I’ll be playing catch up with posting my 365 pictures this weekend. I’ve been busy this week putting the finishing touches on an article for Issue 5 of Uppercase Magazine!

Just a quick update on the terrarium. When I was hiking in Halton, I picked up two little plants. One is a fern and I’m not sure what the other one is. I’ve planted them both and they seem to be doing well. At the very least there’s a bit more action in there. The moss is still mossy and green. Yeah! The mini birch log and acorn cap are still providing some woodland cuteness.

What a gorgeous fall/birthday weekend! Saturday night Andrew took me to Le Select Bistro for my favourite meal, steak frites. Everything was incredible; the wine, the crispy fries, the perfectly cooked steak and the yummy creme brule. I LOVE french bistro and this was everything I love about french bistro. Delicious and luxurious!

On Sunday we drove out to the Halton region to hike on the Niagara Escarpment with Maisy. It’s one of our favourite excursions, no matter what the season. With the changing leaves right now, the landscape is especially brilliant. The woodland scenery is filled with mossy rocks, ferns, chipmunks and large mushrooms, so I was endlessly mesmerized by it all. I lifted two tiny little plants for my terrarium and wished that I could have taken home a few mossy logs and rocks.

Sunday night I finished dress 13, which has a bit of a woodland theme. I wore it last night at the workroom’s birthday party, so I’ll be posting it tomorrow. This was definitely the best birthday I’ve had yet!

Sadly, the cute mushroom turned black and died a couple days after I started the terrarium. Everything else – the moss and little fern – seem to be doing okay.

I added the little birch twig yesterday, to add some visual interest. I feel like my terrarium could use a stylist.

The acorn cap is still there.

What a thrilling update. I guess no news is good news in terrarium world.

I’m crazy for moss. I don’t know why, but I love it. If I could, I would live in a house carpeted in moss. More than likely this obsession stems from my fascination with fairies. I never said, but fairies are my favourite mythical creature. Everybody knows how much fairies love moss, right?

Over the years, I’ve tried to bring more moss into my life. The trouble is that moss requires very specific growing conditions and neither my backyard nor my house resembles a shady, moist forest. I’ve tried decorative bowls filled with moss, moss lining my planters and moss edging for the patio. Unfortunately, I’ve killed lots of moss in the process.

This is why I’m so excited about my new terrarium. This enclosed glass mini eco-system should be perfect for keeping moss alive… theoretically.

On Monday, I started gathering together all the essentials for this project. Almost everything I used for the terrarium were found materials, the only thing I purchased was some activated carbon from an aquarium shop. The activated carbon or charcoal is used to filter the water in the terrarium and keep things clean. I used this vintage cracker jar that I had found a few months ago. On my walk with Maisy, I scooped up a small section of moss from the woods, complete with a cute mushroom. My local lumberyard let me grab a handful of gravel and sand for free! When I got home, I divided a small fern we have growing in our front yard.

Into my cleaned out glass jar, I put a layer of gravel with a bit of sand. The gravel provides drainage for the water. On top of that I put a layer of activated carbon. Then a layer of dried moss or sphagnum moss. I have a good collection of dried out/dead moss already. This keeps the soil from getting down into water below. My section of live moss had a nice layer of soil attached to it, so i just cut it to size and evened out the bottom. Once the moss was in the jar, I made a little hole to plant my mini fern. I tried to tamp down the moss and all the layers below to compact it all together. I even put in the acorn cap that was sitting on the moss when I harvested it. A little bit of water was added to get the roots wet and then I put the lid on.

The idea with a closed terrarium is that it is it’s own eco-system. The plants produce oxygen and the water condensates and runs down the glass and waters the plants. If it gets too misty, you can open the lid and let it dry out a bit. After a few weeks, apparently things get sorted out and it just takes cares of itself.

I’m mentally planning more terrariums, but I’ll see how this one progresses. It’s pretty amazing though. It’s like a little green mossy world on my bedside table.

These terrariums by Paula Hayes are a whole other level. {via unruly things}