Creating an indoor water garden is a great project idea for those looking for different ways to display their houseplants. Whether you’re a beginner or an expert at gardening, growing plants in water is always a fun hobby. Not to mention, a water garden means you never have to worry about over- or under-watering your plants, which makes it the easiest indoor way to take care of your plants!
Aquatic plants can be divided into three types: true aquatics, semi-aquatics, and floating plants. You can have all three types of plants, depending on how you want your garden to look.
What You’ll Need
Equipment:
- Toothbrush
- Cloth or rag
Materials:
- Clear glass container
- Plants
- Filtered water
- Rocks or pebbles
- Aquatic plant food
Step-by-Step Guide
- Choose the plants you want for your indoor water garden. Some popular choices include java moss, amazon sword, anubias, pothos, calla lilies, English ivy, water lettuce, Amazon frogbit, etc.
- Select the container you’ll use. Any type of glass container will do as long as it stays watertight. You can even reuse jars or vases, or visit a local thrift shop for some cheap containers. The size and shape also depend on the plants you plan to have.
- Clean existing debris from the roots. This is applicable regardless of the type of plant you chose. Not only does this keep the water clean, but it also allows the roots to fully transition into the water.
- After cleaning your plants, you can then start putting your water garden together. If you’re using floater plants, you can skip this step since you’ll be adding water to the container before placing the plants. For true aquatic plants, rocks or pebbles can be used for weighing down the plant’s base. Put the plant at the bottom of the container and add the rocks gently until you have firmly secured it while leaving the top of the root balls exposed to allow root growth. For semi-aquatic plants, you will need to hold the roots of the plant in place when you add water. You can use rocks for this too, depending on the look you’re hoping to achieve.
- Then, add filtered water to the container. For floater plants, add the water and then arrange the plants according to your desired look. For true aquatic and semi-aquatic plants, you will need to add water after placing the plants. Make sure the water doesn’t fall directly onto the plants.
- Finally, you can add decorative finishing touches to your indoor water garden if you prefer.