When I saw this empty tank at my mother’s house upon visiting her last Summer, I immediately knew that it belonged with me. I had been wanting to experiment with building a terrarium for some time but the impulse to “just do it” never really came to me because… well I’m a very laidback gardener (I learnt everything I know from the OG laidback gardener, Larry Hodgson). But this tank seemed perfect; I love those that are completely clear with no plastic bordering the sides or the top. Plus, the opening is small yet still big enough to work around. And I had a vintage-looking nightstand just the perfect size for the base and one last LED light laying around. A recipe for success, right? WELL! You wouldn’t be able to guess from looking at the final result but working with such a small opening is incredibly frustrating! I can only get one arm in at a time (and I’m a tiny person) so scaping was quite challenging. I cannot imagine how anyone could use this as an aquarium. How would you go about cleaning?
Initially the intent was not to build an altar, let alone a faerie altar. I just wanted to experiment with building a terrarium and push myself a little bit as a gardener / plant hobbyist. But in true laidback gardener fashion, I procrastinated on this project for about six months. The catalyst for my sudden spur of inspiration were these ceramic mushrooms I found in the garden section of the dollar store. (They’re so cute though!) At first I was planning on using these in the garden but was concerned the weather would quickly wear them (there’s a faerie patch I’m building). The bigger ones also make a bell-like noise and I wasn’t sure if that would scare away the animals. (Yes, I actually welcome our little fur friends even if they eat everything I grow heh.) Once I had decided that I would use them in the tank, the rest was pretty much settled: this would become a little faerie home. But I really meant it as a quirky joke, you know? I guess it became more serious the moment I could no longer find the Ten of Swords in my copy of the Mystic Faerie Tarot…
Aside from the LED light precariously resting on top of the tank with painter’s tape (which I probably won’t fix), the foundational components of this build were inspired by SerpaDesign on YouTube. There are three main layers. At the very bottom, there is a layer of LECA to catch excess water & generally help with drainage. Then, nestled between two sheets of landscape fabric is a layer of horticultural charcoal to absorb odours and deter mould. And finally, the top is a thick layer of substrate consisting of finely chopped LECA, charcoal, orchiata bark, and peat moss. I chose to exclude sphagnum moss because my environment seems to promote algae very quickly. I also didn’t have any gardening sand around so I’m doing this with peat moss instead. (But I think sand would drain a lot better..)
If you look closely at the centre, you will notice a black plastic tube. It rests at the bottom of the tank, traverses all the different layers of substrate, and is positioned right underneath the tank opening. This is to help with evaporation if water were to stagnate excessively at the bottom. (I can also use an electric water dispenser to pump out the water if needed.) Small pebbles, quartz points, and an aged piece of driftwood complete the setup. As for the plants, there are only four: a blue star fern (Phlebodium aureum), a rabbit’s foot fern (Davallia fejeensis), a heart leaf fern (Hemionitis arifolia), and a polka dot plant in the pink variegation that I divided into three (Hypoestes phyllostachya). (The red variegation is very dark*) What’s with all the ferns, you ask? Ferns are a story of unrequited love: I love them, but they don’t love my dry environment. I’m hoping this tank will help with the humidity (it was around 70 last time I measured). I’m also hoping growing ferns in peat moss will be okay despite their epiphytic nature. We’ll see how everything settles..
*In the end, I only kept a few of the original elements (read about it here): small stones (lake pebbles in fact), mushrooms (from the dollar store but I’m very inspired to make some from papier mâché for a different project!), fiery wands (aka clear quartz points because I didn’t have any coloured ones), and pops of pink/red here and there (thanks to the polka dot plant). I was tempted to grow English ivy but didn’t think their viny nature would fit this small enclosure. Also just to be clear, my intention in building this altar is not to call in the fae and certainly not to work with them in magic (but they’re welcome to chill out here!). I mainly wanted a visual reminder for this internal work that I’m doing (that somehow I linked to faeries). I’ll tell you about the faerie patch next time!
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