A bottle full of nature

Plants have a quiet way of making everything feel more alive—and I love that. Something about plants and greenery instantly lifts my mood. There’s a calmness in them, a sense of life that makes everything feel just a little better.

Discovering the Magic of Terrariums

A few years ago, I came across a picture of a bottle with plants growing inside it. It made me curious—why would someone put plants in a sealed bottle? How would the plants even survive? Where do they get air or carbon dioxide? I started searching for similar images, and soon I discovered the term terrarium, a self-sustaining ecosystem inside a bottle. Once I knew what to call it, my recommendations on Google, YouTube, and Pinterest were filled with terrarium-related things. People were creating tiny, beautiful, almost magical landscapes inside glass jars. I was fascinated.

My First Attempt

A few months later, during the rainy season, I spotted some moss growing on the walls around my house. I picked up a glass bottle from the kitchen and decided to try making one myself. I didn’t have the fancy tools or materials like the ones shown in YouTube tutorials—all I had was some moss, a bit of soil, and the bottle. Still, I managed to create something that looked pretty nice. Unfortunately, it didn’t survive more than a month. The humidity and soil quality weren’t right for the moss to thrive. But that didn’t stop the excitement I felt when I first made it.

Moss Finds a Home Again

A few days back, I visited a hill station near Idukki and spotted thick green moss growing over big roadside rocks. I gently collected a small piece to bring back home. I wanted to try again—to see that little patch of green thrive inside a bottle once more. This time, I created it in a tiny glass bottle, which made it even more beautiful.