I Made a Free Terrarium 1,814 Days Ago. How Is It?

I was going through things the other day when I realized that it's already been five years since I made the "$0 Free Terrarium." It has always been one of my favorites and I haven't shown it in a while. How is it doing this many years later? Those questions and more are answered in this video. Enjoy!

Original Terrarium Build Video

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[SerpaDesign]

I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve made some of these projects! It feels like just yesterday that I built this terrarium nearly half a decade ago. I definitely think going the “free native terrarium” route is a great starting place for someone just starting out. I put this original build video for this in the description for reference. Anyway, what do you think of its progress now? Have a great weekend SerpaSquad!

[daan]

You've had anywhere between 51 and 86 generations of springtails throughout the lifespan of that terrarium so far! With a lifespan anywhere between 3 to 5 weeks that's really cool! For perspective in humans that would bring us back anywhere between a thousand and 1700 years! Incredible :)

[debiw]

Thank you for sharing this update, Tanner! I had to say goodbye to a 17 year old fur baby recently. We buried her in a wooded area nearby, and I wanted to do one of these with materials found near her burial. Knowing that it can be something that will last years is a huge relief. I've never built a terrarium before, so I'll definitely go back over some of your previous projects and take notes this time.

[glassyGREEN_]

Wow, that's amazing. I love very old terrariums, even if they may not look that good, the feeling of having created a functioning ecosystem that can last for years is just incredible 😊

[nathanleonard]

Hey Tanner! Thanks to your videos my wife and I made our first Terrariums last week. They are small and arguably have way too big of false bottoms. But I'm hooked because of you. I'm saving jars, looking for moss near creeks, and craving a riparium and Target box living wall. Thanks for the inspiration you've given us!

[pax]

This was literally the terrarium that finally tipped the scales for me. Picked up my wife, went into the nature and collected mats that I used to make my 1st 2 closed terrariums. Did a lot more since then.
Since I spend most of my work and private life surrounded by tech this hobby provides much needed zen.
Thank you for your work.

[ericpenrose]

Just made one of these with my 16 month old daughter. She wasn't much for designing the terrarium but as for gathering materials she was surprisingly good at picking stuff out once she saw what I was grabbing. I think this may be the first interest we've ever truly shared that she could play a constructive role in.
Building terrariums and keeping animals was a strong hobby of mine when I was younger that I fell out of due to a demanding career. I would never have guessed that this period of my life would be the one I could pick up an old hobby when my attention is stretched thin between a stressful job and toddler, but here we are! She was actively interested in figuring out what I was picking up and which jar I was putting certain things in, and contributed more resources than keeping her out of trouble demanded. It was an amazing afternoon which quite possibly shared a love for the hobby, and the outdoors in general, in a much deeper way than I thought she could pick up at this age.
While this is absolutely something which would have been some part of her life eventually, the free terrarium video and your channel are 100% the reason we went out to do it a few days back, and made it happen much sooner than it would have otherwise.

I just wanted to take the chance that you would read this and that you could know that. You may not be curing cancer or digging wells in impoverished communities in Africa (that I know of), but you are absolutely doing real good in this world, and the passions you are cultivating and nurturing may even save this planet, and one day may even help terraform another!

[TerrariumDesigns]

So happy to see this terrarium is doing well, the original build is what got me into terrarium making, true inspiration!💚

[RainCheck]

A few years ago I saw the original video. I needed a cheap/free gift, so I made one. It was free! I found everything in my kitchen, craft stash or backyard. It's still going strong with virtually no maintenance. The only thing I change would be to not add Devil's Ivy (Pothos? Pathos? IDK). I made one for my sister, one for my mom; they both loved them!

[Saharaa]

"Are you still waiting to make one all these years later" unbelievable callout lol.

That video was the reason I subbed, I found it at the beginning of the pandemic (few years old at that point but w/e) and was hooked on your channel since. Awesome update!

[Skidd]

Made a tiny terrarium with my brother 3 years ago in a lightbulb shaped jar. We used nothing but things from our back yard and didn't include a mesh layer or charcoal. Its been going strong ever since. The growth has definitely slowed down a bit, but its still just as green as smells great.

Update: Just checked it out today and it noticed some clovers sprouted in it out of no where. So excited to see new life in there after all these years.

[theharbringer]

So some notes for those wishing to do a free terrarium. This build was what got me started in building them. I still use mostly jars and work on a small scale. I wish I could send you pictures. Mine was a horizontal build with in a month I found small snails moving about. It is now three years old well grown in. I managed to get carbonated wood from a friends burn pit to keep the growing environment sterile. If you are going to do this only use the backend wood not any of the white ash. I do not have a false bottom because it did not need it with the way I layered the soil stone and wood. I used chunks of found wood as the background that is slowly providing nutrients. Every so often I put in green leaf litter and dry leaf litter to revitalize the soil. some plants make it but the moss is pretty hardy. Spring tails can be caught with a sprintail trap there is a tutorial online on how to do it. Time and patience is usually key. Thanks for the content My family loves your videos.

[effy_kujo]

Yes 😮‍💨 I remember when you made this, and I was gung-ho about wanting to make one with my son, but he just didn't seem interested at the time. He's way more interested in exploring new hobbies now & will be 20 years old this month! 😮 it's time we make a lasting memory like this to look back on before he gets older and leaves the nest 🪹🌱🌾🌿☘️🍀🍂

[TheAIAndy]

I made 2 Free terrariums about 6 weeks ago exactly from the video you are reffering to and i love them so much! Thanks for this amazing update!

[cldlight]

Your terrariums have inspired me to make terrariums- and it's crazy to think that this video was five years ago. I love your channel and your videos. Thanks for the update on this terrarium, I enjoy seeing how they evolve over time and the process of upkeep.

[mw]

I made one of these about a year ago and the first week I had it my mom knocked it over so I had to reconstruct it. A week later all the moss became covered in white mold but I figured that if I just let it do it’s thing it would eventually turn green again. Fast forward to today and now there’s so much greenery that the different moss and plants almost fill the entire jar so I would say it’s definitely a success

[MrDionappling]

Slowly but surely, my first terrarium will come to be. Did not know how fascinated I’d be about this until I saw your video along with several others, Thank you for inspiring me.

[MotleyStew]

😮That was the first video of yours YouTube suggested to me, and then I binge watched several more of yours. • Coincidentally, I just recently (a couple weeks ago, March 12th) I FINALLY gathered some native materials for my first terrarium build, and now I’m addicted, I already have 3. 1 in a small fish bowl, 1 in a Crown Royal whiskey bottle and another in a rum bottle. • NOW I truly understand why/how you continue. Thank you for introducing this World of terrarium building to me! I hope my builds will last 1, 814 days too. 🙏🏽

[hans]

That's wild... The appereance after maintenance really shows that your smell check was 100% spot on.

I like how he doesn't just scrap the whole thing just because of it's ugly appearence prior to the maintenance regardless it passes the smell check. Reminds me of that japanese art of broken pottery; I love those.

[morningsnightowl]

Amazing, this build is what drew me to this channel in my burgeoning love of terrariums, it really helped me start experimenting with more local pieces and just being more relaxed and having fun with it! Can't believe it's been so long now! Thank you for keeping up with this one and updating us how it's doing!