Terrarium for a Teenager

I assembled the soil in layers to give adequate drainage that's required since this isn't a regular flowerpot with built-in drainage. Pebble rock at the bottom, cactus soil, sand and a top layer of soil again.

Next was the fun part assembling the plant and collected items, doesn't the driftwood look like a bird? Maybe a blue jay or a woodpecker?

Here's the side view, I even prepared a water misting bottle for my niece to water her mini garden with, it was included in a travel toiletry kit. Cactus plants don't need much water so this ensured she watered them with just the right amount, a few mists was sufficient.

If you were wondering what the red thing was, it was a little ladybug that I glued onto the driftwood for the bird to eat! Haha... kidding!

This project was so relaxing and fun to create I made the second one for her using a glass canister that had a broken lid and was perfect for this. I used the same layering, the green is just food coloring I added to the sand.

This one even got a pet rock added in to just make my niece smile and be reminded of her silly Aunt!

Shown below are the side and top views of the second terrarium, this one had a small bird added in the soil attached to a skewer stick.

Have fun with these mini gardens, they make great gifts for all ages because you can personalize them for the recipient. I hope I've given you a new idea to go try.

Note: A lot of these terrarium gardens suggest you use " activated charcoal" in a bottom layer, however I didn't because I didn't have access to any at the time. These gardens turned out fine but as with all flower pots maintenance and soil refreshing are required.

*Quote taken from Craftsy.com on this:

Due to the fact that terrariums don't have drainage holes, this layer is necessary to make sure excess water won't sit and rot your plant's roots. Layer 2: Put a thin layer of activated charcoal on top of the stones. This will keep bacteria and mold from developing in the terrarium.