I've had a terrarium for years and it all started from one of those Venus fly traps you buy from Walmart in the summer. The venous fly trap eventually died but I decided to keep the hard plastic container to see if anything else would come to life. And with a little patients it eventually did the peat moss around the Venus fly trap sprung to life and took over the container but let's fast forward about 15 years. The plastic container started to die due to sun exposure so I decided to swap the container for a large pickle jar. I decided to remove 90% of the peat moss due to it having negative effects on growth. I also increased the water level by 30% making the original soil extremely moist.
I brought in several different species of moss and lichen and plants to create more competition for the peat moss. Also added a piece of tree bark to add dry surface and soil coverage.
•peat moss
•small unknown plants (waiting for more growth)
•reindeer lichen
•Tree Bark (Male Persimmon)
To keep the moss and lichen from over taking the new container I decided to add some isopods and snails. I wanted this to be a self-regulated biosphere. I know isopods like both a dry and wet area so I decided to design a small hideaway for them to explore during the day.
The structure was 3d printed with grey PLA at 100% infill to stop any possible warping by heat. Long term hope is that the the mosses eventually over take the structures roof allowing it to blend in with the rest of the terrarium. One end of the hideaway is open and the other is closed with a piece of rock moss and reindeer lichen. Some small rocks were added for other areas to hide and explore. The hope is that the moss takes up most of the open soil, I believe this will eliminate or decrease the amount of sitting water.
I will update periodically with updated photos of the growth and life I discover in the Vivarium. If you enjoyed this reading check out my custom lighting I built for it.
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