# No-maintenance bog terrarium questions



## Betta132 (May 12, 2012)

I have an empty 10 gallon that I'd like to turn into a bog terrarium, preferably the sort of terrarium that only needs to occasionally be misted and can otherwise be ignored. 

I'm not certain about the exact construction yet, but I plan to line the sides and back with weed blocker fabric and try to grow ferns and moss up it. I'd also like a water area that takes up something like 1/4 of the whole bottom, probably just a simple area divided off from the rest by some wood. 

Some questions: 

If I intend to keep the substrate soaking wet, do I still need a false bottom? 

What plants would work? The only specific species I have in mind is Ultricularia Sandersonii 'Blue' and some sphagnum. I want to try liverworts and maybe some tiny ferns, but I'm not sure what all would like to be sopping wet, and I'm not sure if there's anything that would do well in a tiny water area. Flowering things would be ideal, but I'm definitely open to suggestions of things that are just foliage plants. Especially tiny ones. I've considered some of the small sundews, but I don't really want to deal with the high lighting they need.

Speaking of, what lighting should I look into for bog plants and mosses?


----------



## sparrow (Nov 14, 2015)

Anubias and java ferns perhaps? They are mostly used in aquariums, but I think originally they belong in swampy bogs? Anubias prefers to be mounted into something like wood or rock, though, rather than sitting in soil. But it's a very sturdy plant and I think sometimes they shoot up a beautiful white flower. Has never happened to me before though, and I've kept them on and off for about 8+ years now. 

The java fern would probably need a lot of misting though, unless it will be extremely humid. Mine withered away almost instantly when I wasn't good enough at misting. Which was sad because it was a huge bunch I had grown over many years.


----------



## Keni (Feb 1, 2017)

I have a 2.5 gallon paludarium that has anubias in it and it's going great.


----------



## sparrow (Nov 14, 2015)

Great looking anubias! They are very nice looking plants. Have you ever had it flower?


----------



## Josh B.A. (Aug 13, 2012)

The majority of plants grown in aquariums will do very well in bog conditions. Edit: The bacopa and the pennywort have flowered for me. 

Here are some that I have used with success:
Ludwigia repens - Grows moderately fast
Brazilian pennywort (Hydrocotyle leucocephala) - Use with extreme caution. With good lighting, this will take over. 
Lemon bacopa (B. Caroliniana) - Grows relatively slowly with the stems being kinda tall and awkward above water. 
Willow hygro (Hygrophila angustifolia) - Grows fast, sending out sturdy, tall reeds. 

I've used all of these plants in both vivariums and aquariums. They seem to prefer growing above the waterline in saturated soil. 

I think you could pull off a tank without a false bottom, although I recommend using a porous substrate like crushed lava rock for the deeper layers. Nasty hydrogen sulfide aside, if you use an organic substrate it will likely turn into black, smelly goo below the water line. However, I do use compost as a planted aquarium substrate and it seems to work just fine.

For lighting, I use finnex leds almost exclusively, although there are a lot of options for planted tanks (cfls, t8s, t5s, par38, etc)...


----------

