Indoor Gardening + Baby Food Jars = Fun Weekend Project

I have been wanting to do some indoor gardening for awhile now. I went to a demonstration on how to create a living wall with succulents a few weeks ago at the California Academy of Sciences Nightlife Series, and since then I've been inspired. This was a starting point for me.  The full wall will follow soon.  Planning is in the works. I have to admit, though, I think what's kept me from trying this type of project out earlier was the moss.  I know that's embarrassing, but it just looked so fancy.  It intimidated me.  I just didn't know the first thing about it (or even where to get it). 

Well, one trip to Lowe's later, and I was good to go.  

I've also been feeling pretty badly about all of the baby food containers that we have been going through lately at our house. Baby June is one good eater, and every time my spoon hits the bottom of the glass and I scoop out the last bite, a pang of guilt runs through me.  I've been trying to figure out what other uses I might be able to get out of those containers. Here's what I came up with.

I bought these 6-pack flats of succulents for 2.99 at Lowe's.  If you've never worked with succulents (a general term for any of the plants with waxy leaves) give it a try.  They are by far the most forgiving of plants.  They can go for weeks without water and can be planted in any light.  The only thing that may vary is their leaf color will turn a bit reddish in bright direct sunlight.  

They can hold up in all types of conditions. They are tough little guys- total survivors! 

I also bought this bag of dry moss at Lowe's.  It was $5.99 and I probably used 1/10 of it.  I'll save the rest for my living wall project.

I filled the bottom of each baby food container with a few rocks.  I chose larger ones that I found right outside my front door.  You can purchase smaller gravel to give this project a more finished look.

Once the rock layer was completed, I placed a succulent into each jar and filled it in with the planting soil. I then pushed in a layer of the dry moss on top.  I filled it up pretty tightly. The lip of the baby food containers made this very easy to do.

I added a little water to each jar once I was done to help the plants with the transition (just make sure not to add too much as there's no real drainage with this set-up). 

 

 I then set up my indoor succulent display.  What do you think? I like the simplicity of it. 

I had a ton of fun making these indoor containers, and I cannot stress how easy they were.  It also made me feel a little bit better about all of those baby food jars that we are going through!  

I feel like these would also make a great end of year teacher's present- it's definitely a project that your kids could help out with.

Happy Monday!

xo.

Dalton

Also, congratulations to ElizabethC for winning the giveaway.  We'll contact you with details on how to get your new print.