# nano terrarium advice - is this even possible?



## Zyzzyzus (Oct 14, 2014)

Hello!

I'm building my first vivarium. It's 12 x 12 x 18. I've done the research as I've gone along on this one, and I already had some of the plants I wanted to use. While looking over these boards I've been completely inspired by some of the nano vivaria. 

I want to get my first one up and running but I live in an apartment without great lighting and LOVE houseplants so this whole concept of having a jungle/rainforest in a box is beyond fantastic!

At this point I'm dreaming about my second one, which I'd like to thoroughly plan out beforehand.

Is the following even possible?

8 x 8 x 12 Exo terra. I'd make my own cork background on two walls (I want to have the side with the doors as not the main viewing side - I don't like the black bar in the center. I also wouldn't cover that side in background, obviously. 

In the center I'd want a small stump or wood feature. For plants: micro orchids and other similarly sized plants. I want plants which can each be obtained for under $20, which would look good in such a small space, which are good for beginners, and I would choose a country/region to 'recreate'.

How many plants could I fit in such a build? Would I be losing too much space to the background?

I'm starting to compile a list of plants but at this point am open to plants from anywhere in the world so if you have a favorite, easy growing tiny plant I'd love to know what it is! I've worked in greenhouses so I'm familiar with standard North American houseplants but not all these awesome tiny things


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

It could be possible, but it will be very hard to build a tank that small. First off, the cork background will need to be built with care as it can definitely take up a significant amount of space. I would search for the thinnest pieces you can find!

The wood centerpiece should work out fine as long as it fits. I really like ghostwood and if you can find some nice small branches, I think it could look awesome.

There are some really great micro mini orchids out there, but you might not always find them under $20. Orchids are surprisingly expensive especially for their size, but I have never regretted the prices I've paid for mine. To me they are well worth the cost. Pleurothallid orchids make excellent vivarium plants for the most part and I find them to be very interesting. Small Bulbophyllum species are also great for these kind of tanks and they generally do well, too. Here is a quick list of some of my favorite mini viv orchids:

Pleurothallis grobyii
Pleurothallis microphylla
Pleurothallis corniculata - not sure if this qualifies for micro-mini but its still small
Pleurothallis (Stelis) mystax
Pleurothallis alata
Pleurothallis megalops
Pleurothallis ornata (sheidei)
Pleurothallis brighamii
Pleurothallis allenii - might get a bit too tall for you
Restrepia spp. - most do pretty well
Platystele argentosa - other platystele sp. are also great in vivs too
Psygmorchis pusilla - I have heard its short lived, but really neat plant
Haraella retrocalla
Barbosella spp. - some are really cool and tiny
Scaphosepalum rapax - heard these are near bullet proof, but I haven't grown it before
Bulbophyllum alagense
Dendrobium oligophyllum
Bulbophyllum lasiochilum
Gastorchilus japonicas

Here are some nice resources/vendors to check out as well.

Andy's Orchids - Orchid Species - Orchids - Species Specialist - Orchids on a stick - pretty much anything stick mounted is tiny. The search feature is really nice for this site
J&L Orchids ~ Home Page - has a decent variety of minis
Ecuagenera.com - lots of pleurothallids!
Internet Orchid Species Photo Encyclopedia - great resource overall
seattleorchid - lots of minis!

Good luck!

John


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## FwoGiZ (Jul 8, 2008)

8x8x12... with background on 2 sides... that gives you a whopping.. 6x6 inches of walking space...
I've fit 2 plants in a 12x12x18 and found it overly jammed, not many animals could live in there. Maybe a tiny arboreal that doesn't require much space but you're saying you want to create a biotope? I think you're seeing grand a little bit!! This tank would be too small for just one leuc... and I'd even think it would be too small for most rani even just one!!
Those tiny tanks are mostly for inverts if you ask me. A nice scorpion or tarantula would be perfect in there.

You could possibily maybe have a duo of rani in a 12x12x18 and that's the smallest I'd go...
with a really nice tiny piece of wood and two plants that complete each others, it could be interesting.

Not a big fan of nano tanks tho, animal care wise, they're harder and not as proper.
18x18x24 is a perfect size for lotso animals and doesn't take a whole lot of space!
You can even incorporate a water feature and put several plants!


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## Sammie (Oct 12, 2009)

I know it doesn't say, but I sorta got the impression that this would be a plant only tank. 

I do agree that background on two sides would be a bit much for such a small tank, even if it's thin it would look crowded.

But hey, each to his own. It's totally doable. There are plenty of tiny orchids, ferns and vines in the hobby and if you choose species carefully you can probably fit a dozen or so.
And why not a small mantis while you're at it?


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## Zyzzyzus (Oct 14, 2014)

Hi, yes, sorry for not being more clear in my first post but this would definitely be a plant only tank. Thanks for the list of orchids, and resources! I'm not planning on actually building anything on this tank for at least a couple of months. Another concern/question for those who are familiar with small tanks: would an established tank this size be unable be left alone for a day or two because it would need such frequent misting? I'm willing to consider going up to a 12 x 12 x 18 size but the smaller one is really appealing because I will be moving around a lot in the next couple of years (so definitely no animals) and I know I can find the space for a small tank.


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## Dev30ils (May 1, 2012)

FroggyKnight said:


> Here is a quick list of some of my favorite mini viv orchids:
> 
> Pleurothallis grobyii
> Pleurothallis microphylla
> ...


Guess we know who is going to be contributing to an Orchid Care Sheet...

As for the thinness of the background you could try siliconing some hygrolon to the glass and see how that works, it definitely doesn't take up much space. Or you could attach it with gorilla glue if you need a little more thickness.



Zyzzyzus said:


> Another concern/question for those who are familiar with small tanks: would an established tank this size be unable be left alone for a day or two because it would need such frequent misting?


I wouldn't stress over the misting once the plants are established. I've had a 12x12x12 that I've used as a grow out in the past that I just use for plants now. It only needs to be misted once or twice a week. The plants are really pretty good at regulating their own humidity.


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## inka4040 (Oct 14, 2010)

Sounds almost exactly like a setup I had a couple years back. 8 x 12, BG on 2 sides, mostly ferns and mini orchids. 

You can check out the link here: http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/plants/85852-yet-another-mini-orchid-terrarium.html

A couple caveats when working with a tank this small. Scale is really important. You can get an idea of how restrictive everything is by looking at how the tiny start of a macodes petola basically skewed the sense of dimension for the entire setup. 

Also, micro climes will be very difficult to pull off. In such a small space, there is not likely to be a huge variation in temperature gradients or moisture levels. 

Aside from that though, you can definitely pull off a nice setup with those constraints. Just be sure you have an exit strategy for when things get overgrown. The plants in the setup I linked eventually had to be re-homed into bigger quarters.


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## Zyzzyzus (Oct 14, 2014)

Thanks again for the information. So, is it possible to choose plants that won't eventually outgrow such a tank? Or, that would take a few years to do so? If everything will eventually outgrow a nano tank, what about a 12x12x18? When people talk about mature orchids that fit on quarters, are those orchids mature, but they will keep growing/spreading so that they could still outgrow a small tank?


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## inka4040 (Oct 14, 2010)

The minis and micro minis might not get that tall, but most have the potential to grow out and form colonies to take up available space. If you have your heart set on keeping things in the smaller enclosure, you can always remove/divide plants as they get too large.


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

Zyzzyzus said:


> Thanks again for the information. So, is it possible to choose plants that won't eventually outgrow such a tank? Or, that would take a few years to do so? If everything will eventually outgrow a nano tank, what about a 12x12x18? When people talk about mature orchids that fit on quarters, are those orchids mature, but they will keep growing/spreading so that they could still outgrow a small tank?


Most of what I listed shouldn't outgrow the tank. The only one that might would be the allenii, mine is a bit tall but not as bad as some other "mini orchids" I've seen.

If they fit on a quarter, then I highly doubt they will outgrow the tank. Usually those are mature blooming size plants and they won't spread much more. If they do somehow outgrow the tank, just take a division and share with someone else. I know I always love getting plants

Matt, haha, I could give it a shot, but there are some much more experienced orchid growers on Dendroboard. I would definitely like input from the veteran growers on the care sheet as well 

John


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## Zyzzyzus (Oct 14, 2014)

Thanks again! I really appreciate everybody being so helpful. FroggyKnight, are what you listed 'beginner' orchids? I think I would probably get two or three to start with and maybe a mini sinningia and maybe some selaginella and see how it goes. I don't want to spend a ton of money on plants until I am reasonably sure I won't kill them. I'm pretty good with 'regular' houseplants but this whole terrarium thing is new to me.

Also, does anybody have recommendations of tiny plants that aren't orchids?


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

I hate to categorize any orchid as a "beginner orchid" because there are always conditions the plant will either like or not like. You could take a super delicate inforgiving species an grow it right next to a generally easy plant and the delicate one may thrive, whereas the easy one dies. It all depends on the conditions. The orchids I listed are all relatively forgiving and can take some abuse. Most of them are recommended quite often here on dendroboard and are proven to be great vivarium plants.

John


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## FroggyKnight (Mar 14, 2013)

Many peperomia species are great tiny plants and they are pretty easy. They often grow fast, but you can always sell cuttings! Marcgravia species might be a decent option for a shingling plant, but it may just be better to save the space it takes up for orchids instead. Some *small* Philodendron species could work too, if you find one you like.

John


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## inka4040 (Oct 14, 2010)

Personally, I'd avoid things like peps and selaginella in such a small enclosure. What might pass for lackadaisical growth in a larger enclosure can quickly balloon to full blown infestation in such small quarters. There are a number of pyrossia, lemmaphyllum, and microgramma species that would work well in here. Davallia parvula, if you can get your hands on it, is another awesome plant. Anubias nana 'petite' is another workhorse for tiny enclosures. Look into asplenium filmy ferns, and the less weedy liverworts like riccardia, schistochila, and maybe plagiomnium as well.


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## Zyzzyzus (Oct 14, 2014)

I'll definitely look into those other small plants. Thanks! I was hesitant about the idea of using selaginella because I've seen it take over an 8" pot quite quickly.

As for the idea of 'beginner' orchids, good point. I'll keep an eye of the temperatures in my first tank, and use that to get an idea of what the second will likely be at.


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## Wusserton (Feb 21, 2014)

Given the right circumstances every plant is going to grow somewhat larger than specified or in a small space suffer, why not an 18x18x24, they aren't huge by any means and can draw a lot of love and attention even in an apartment or small space and it gives you way more options for planting and possible water features which are also eye candy for company when they come over! lol


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## AzureusRBoss (Sep 3, 2013)

I personally have a 12x12x18 with two R vanzolini in it and they thrive I think dart frogs are tougher than they are often given credit for because until now (I'm building a great stuff background and sculpting it to shape) they had no background just a fake vine a potted bromeliad and some leaf litter.


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## AzureusRBoss (Sep 3, 2013)

Ok my last post is basically meant to conclude why not upgrade from the 8x8x12 to a 12x12x18 or even better an 18x18x24 and get some frogs and plant some slightly larger plants and have more room for smaller plants


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