What Do Terrarium Plants Need to Grow?
A terrarium is a terrestrial aquarium. Essentially it is a small, artificial environment used to house small non-aquatic pets, such as reptiles or amphibians. Terrariums can be decorated with artificial logs, rocks, fake plants or live plants. Just like any other live plant, terrarium plants require sunlight, a substrate, air and water to grow. It is very easy to provide terrarium plants with all of the requirements for them to grow properly. Does this Spark an idea?
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Climate
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The key to getting terrarium plants to grow successfully is choosing plants that are best suited to the climate in the terrarium. Because the humidity and temperature in a terrarium should depend on what type of animal is living in it, plants should be chosen according to the climate that is already established in the terrarium.
If the terrarium is hot and dry for a desert animal, the plant should be well suited to this climate in order to grow. These can include various species of cacti and succulents such as aloe vera. If the terrarium is moist and cool for tropical animals, plants that will grow best in these conditions include photos, pitcher plants, African violets, various herbs, Irish moss and ferns.
Water
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Just as all plants need water, most terrarium plants need frequent watering to grow. This can be achieved by misting the plants daily or watering them directly at their roots. If the terrarium plant is a desert plant like a cactus, it will only need to be watered two or three times per year to grow.
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Sunlight
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All plants need sunlight to grow. Terrarium plants are no different, however it is sometimes difficult to provide a plant with the sunlight it needs to grow in a terrarium. Instead, UV lighting can be used as artificial sunlight. This UV lighting is harmless to terrarium animals and may even be necessary for them to thrive, so adding the UV lighting will not have any detrimental effects and will stimulate plant growth just as natural sunlight would.
Substrate
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Terrarium plants require some sort of substrate to grow. This can include soil, coconut fiber, gravel and even air, depending on the plant. The plants can be planted along the bottom of the terrarium or left in pots and placed in the terrarium.
Air
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Terrarium plants need access to air in order to grow. Ensure the terrarium is well-ventilated, so that the plant can obtain the gases it needs to grow, such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen and oxygen.
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References
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- Photo Credit Plant image by Platinum Pictures from Fotolia.com
