Growing Carnivorous Plants

Small Terrarium

When you are making a terrarium, feel free to alter the plans. I looked at a few different plans before I made the plans to my two terrariums. My small terrarium that I will describe here is very inexpensive, while the large terrarium I will talk about later is more expensive. You can use both of these plans to make an ideal terrarium for yourself, but the purpose of this page is to make a suitable terrarium that is low cost. You can add features or materials from the larger terrarium plans to make the small terrarium look better.

Materials

The first thing to do is gather your materials. Again, this list contains easy to find and inexpensive materials. The total cost of this terrarium is about $40-$50 plus the cost of the plants. My small terrarium, I planted the plants directly inside, you can only do this if your plants do not require a dormant period. See the details of each plant for those that require a dormant period. The parts list is in the table below.

Quant Item Approx Cost Use
1 Small Fish Tank $5-20 The terrarium
1 Glass lid $5 The lid to keep temperature and humidity right
1 Aluminum Foil $1 To reflect light into the terrarium
2 1 x 1 inch boards $1 To support the lights
2-3 Fluorescent Lights 12-18 Inches $8-12 each The light for the terrarium
1 Hygrometer/thermometer $10 Measure the Temperature and Humidity
1 Roll Electrical Tape $2 Tape foil, other things
--- Twist Ties --- Tying things down

More Information About the Parts

Fish Tank

The fish tank should be as short as possible. You can find tall tanks, but these are not ideal because you want the lights to be as close to the plants as possible. If you only have a few plants, a small 5 gallon tank is best, I like the size of a 10 gallon tank because it is big enough for holding several plants but is still easy enough to move. I would consider anything up to about a 50 gallon tank as small, though a tank of that size is hard to move.

Glass Lid

The lid should leave about an inch gap in the front of the tank to allow for air circulation. You should get the fish tank first and then get the proper measurements. You can get the glass lid cut to size at a glass shop or some hardware stores. Since you will be handling the glass every time you need to access the plants, you will want to get the edges rounded. I also recommend getting double strength to reduce the chances of the glass breaking. It is also wise to get glass instead of plastic because first, some plastics can absorb the high intensity light, they can get scratched over time, and they generally do not let enough light get through.

Aluminum Foil

This is used to reflect light from the back and sides back into the terrarium. You will want to include this part to allow the most light possible onto your plants. As will be talked about in the Large Terrarium plans, you can get more expensive, better reflecting materials for this part if you want to. I use foil for my small terrarium and MonoKote from a hobby shop in my larger terrarium.

Boards

The boards will hold the lights up about an inch above the tank, which is ideal for air and heat flow. These should be cut to the length of the short side of the terrarium. Usually, you will only need to buy one board from a lumbar yard and get it cut to the proper size.

Fluorescent Lights

You will need at least 2 lights, I use three, but two is most good enough. I have grow lights in those fixtures simply because I already had them at my house. If you need to buy lights, you do not need that extra expense. If you use cool white and warm white lights in combination, you will get all the light you need. In fact, if you use only grow lights, the viewing color of the tank will not be as pleasant since grow lights have a bluish tint to them.

Hygrometer / Thermometer

These will be used to measure the conditions inside the tank. I have mine mounted on twist ties and taped down to the back of the tank. I have the air opening of the glass lid in the front to prevent a false reading on these meters. You can buy a digital combo meter as I have in my larger terrarium or two gauge meters as I have in the small terrarium.

Construction

  1. The first thing you will want to do is make sure the tank is clean on the inside and out.
  2. Cut the aluminum foil to the proper size for covering the two sides and the back of the tank.
  3. Tape the foil down with the electrical tape.
  4. Tie the Hygrometer / Thermometer to some twist-ties, extend the tie outside the tank and tape them down on the outside.
  5. Put an inch of pure water in the bottom of the terrarium and place your plants inside.
  6. Put the glass lid on the terrarium with the inch gap in the front.
  7. Put the two boards on the top (not directly on the glass).
  8. Place the lights on top of the boards and plug them in.

You have properly created your terrarium. Now, you will want to place this somewhere out of direct sunlight. You can also place the lights on an electrical timer so that you don't have to turn them on and off every day. One other thing is that it is a good idea to lift the plants off the bottom about an inch or so. To do this, you can use a grated drop-ceiling light cover which consists of small plastic squares.

Maintenance

The lights should be on the plants about 14-18 hours a day with artificial light. The best way to do this is to put the lights on an electrical timer. If you are going to do this, make sure that your lights are automatic starting lights. There are some fluorescent lights that you have to hold down a trigger before the light starts; this kind of light can not be used with a timer.

Cleaning the tank is going to be about a monthly chore. To clean the tank, remove the lights, boards, lid, and plants. Dump out the water and clean the inside with soap and water. Be sure to rinse the tank very well because many soaps have chemicals in them that will cause algae to grow well. Use a glass cleaner on the outside of the terrarium and the lid. Replace the water, plants, lid, boards, and light. For a small tank, this can be done in about 30 minutes.

All information on this site ©2006 State College Carnivorous Plants. Site designed and maintained by Tom Murosky. Last update January 22, 2007. I allow free use of all written materials on this site. Easy download PDF files availible in the resource link of each plant type. Photographs may contain copyrights from other organizations, you must contact them regarding use of photographs. -- We have had visitors.