Terrarium as a table centrepiece: the showpiece of an interior

A large terrarium is a table centrepiece that does not wilt. A bouquet lasts a week. A closed terrarium stays green all year, and it needs water once or twice a year. It makes a table, a console or a sideboard the point you look at when you enter the room.

Three things decide success: height, length and light.

On the table: stay under 20 cm

At the table, people must be able to see each other over the decoration. This is the florists' rule for table centrepieces, and it applies to a terrarium: stay under 20 cm high.

Two of our geometric terrariums are made for this. They are long and low: 17.5 cm high.

• Prisme Valley, 50 × 25 × 17.5 cm: four fittonias, a fern and living moss. A landscape of hills.
• Prisme Mosaic, 47 × 21 × 17.5 cm: five fittonias in five colours, between cushions of living moss. A carpet of colour.

The right length

The terrarium must leave room for the plates. Allow at most a third of the table's length.

Look at the width too. A terrarium 21 to 25 cm wide leaves about 30 cm to each guest on a 90 cm table.

On a console or in the hall

The hall is the first image of the home. A long terrarium, placed alone on a console, gives it in a second.

Here, height is no longer limited: nobody needs to see over it. A terrarium 23 to 36 cm high is fine. Look at the depth of the furniture: a console is often 30 to 35 cm deep, and the terrarium must not overhang the edge.

On a sideboard, an island or a coffee table

These pieces of furniture are seen from several sides. Choose an almost cubic volume, beautiful from every angle. On a coffee table, you see it from above: the moss and the coloured foliage then count for more than the height of the plants.

Our guide to the geometric terrarium compares the seven shapes.

Leave it alone

A centrepiece needs no company. Three rules:

• Nothing taller beside it. A large vase or a tall lamp competes with it.
• Clear furniture. Remove small objects. The empty space around the glass is part of the decor.
• A plain surface. Wood, stone or a plain tablecloth. A busy pattern blurs the facets of the glass.

Light

• Place the furniture near a window, in bright light.
• Avoid direct sun: behind closed glass, it heats the air and burns the leaves.
• For a dinner, a warm light from the side makes the facets shine. Keep candles at least 30 cm from the glass.

If the room is dark, our guide to terrarium lighting explains how to add a lamp.

Mistakes to avoid

1. A terrarium too tall on the table. Guests lean to talk to each other.
2. A table in full sun. Behind a south-facing picture window, draw a net curtain.
3. A hot dish against the glass. Leave a gap.
4. Fragile furniture. A planted terrarium is heavy. Place it on stable furniture.

In short

1. On the table: under 20 cm high, at most a third of the table's length.
2. On a console: the depth of the furniture decides.
3. Alone, on clear furniture.
4. Bright light, never direct sun.

For care, read caring for a closed terrarium.

Sources

• The Bloom Room: Floral Design Basics, West Virginia University Extension
• Creating a Closed Terrarium, Penn State Extension
• How to Design a Closed-System Terrarium, Mississippi State University Extension
• Manufacturer data sheets for the terrariums (dimensions, materials, manufacture, lead time)