How To Make A Tabletop Moss Garden

What You Need

Drill and ceramic-tile bitCeramic dishLandscape fabricPea gravelWell-draining potting mixRocks and vascular plantsSpoon, skewerMossTweezers or surgical clippers

Step 1: Drill Holes

Using the ceramic-tile bit, drill a center hole in the ceramic dish. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the dish, allowing water to settle the dust and cool the drill bit as it heats up. Begin drilling at a 45-degree angle to create a groove as a foothold, stabilizing the bit. Then slowly move the drill to a 90-degree angle and finish drilling. Wash the dish.

Step 2: Add Fabric and Pea Gravel

Line the bottom of the dish with landscape fabric so rock and potting mix won’t clog the drainage hole. Add a thin layer of pea gravel to assist in drainage.

Step 3: Add Potting Mix and Accents

Add well-draining potting mix to just below the brim. Begin adding your “bones” of the dish garden. Use a kitchen spoon to dig holes for vascular plants (such as baby ferns). In this project, David Spain uses a rock and an ebony spleenwort fern for structure.

Step 4: Cut and Add Moss

Add a larger piece of moss than the space allows and, using your clippers, trim to a size a little larger than needed so the edges can be tucked in. Lay it atop the potting mix and press down firmly.

Step 5: Tuck in Edges

Use any tool to tuck in the edges of the moss. Spain uses a bamboo skewer. Using tweezers or a surgical clippers, remove any leaf debris. The final design includes mosses Brachythecium rutabulum and Dicranum scoparium, reindeer moss (Cladonia spp.), and ebony spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron). Make a Forest Terrarium