Indoor Water Garden Guide: How to Make an Indoor Water Garden

An indoor water garden is a small or large glass container filled with water providing a home for water or bog plants that would typically grow in an outdoor pond. This garden setup recreates a water-based ecosystem inside for water-growing plants, making it similar to a terrarium. This setup showcases the exposed roots of floating and submerged water plants. An indoor water garden makes for an excellent indoor water feature, and it is a simple DIY project that you can complete in less than an hour.

A healthy indoor water garden starts with the right water-friendly plants. Here are three main types of water plants that can thrive in an indoor water garden.

1. 1. True aquatic plants: True aquatics are plants that grow completely underwater, from roots to foliage. Some examples of true aquatics include java moss, amazon sword, and Anubias.
2. 2. Semi-aquatic plants: Semi-aquatics have roots that grow in the water but foliage that grows above the water’s surface. Many houseplants can transition from growing in soil to becoming semi-aquatic plants including philodendron, pothos plants, calla lilies, spider plants, and English ivy.
3. 3. Floating plants: These plants float on the surface of the water, and include popular species such as duckweed, water lettuce, water lilies, and water hyacinths.

Here is a list of the materials you will need to build your own indoor water garden.

• Water container: This can be anything from an old fish tank to a small mason jar. Other vessels you could use to build a water garden include a glass bowl, jug, or vase. You will also need rocks or colored pebbles to line the bottom of your container, especially if you are working with aquatic plants or semi-aquatics.
• Water plants and plant food: Choose which water plant you would like to showcase for your indoor water garden, and stock up on the right plant food for that particular type of plant.
• Filtered water: Water quality is paramount when you’re furnishing your outdoor garden, so you always want to use filtered water. If you don’t have filtered water, leave your tap water to sit out for twenty-four hours before you add it to your water garden so that any residual chlorine can evaporate.

A container water garden isn’t just a simple yet showy indoor garden design idea. It’s a low-maintenance way to keep water-loving plants healthy. Follow these simple instructions for building your own DIY indoor water garden.

• Choose your water plants. First, you want to decide which plants you’re going to build your garden around. A combination of fully aquatic, semi-aquatic, and floaters will give your water garden variety and interest. Consider the amount of size you have for your water garden, and choose larger or smaller plants depending on the size of plant or container you can accommodate.
• Choose your containers. Now that you know which plants you want to use, it’s time to decide which containers to put them in. For a larger garden, a good option is a rectangular goldfish tank from a pet store. For a smaller water garden, something as simple as a large mason jar can be used.
• Choose a location. Arrange your indoor water garden in an area of your home that gets some full sun, but not too much of it. Too much sunlight can cause your plants to yellow, so avoid placing your water garden near a sunny window. Some light aeration is good, but you don’t want to place your plants somewhere too breezy, which could disrupt them.
• Clean your plant's roots. You will need to gently clean all excess dirt and debris from your plant's roots before you plant them, especially if you’re planting semi-aquatic plants. Use an old cloth or toothbrush to gently scrub the soil from its roots. This will help to keep your water clean and stave off algae growth.
• Add submerged or semi-aquatic plants to your container. To keep your submerged plants secure, place them at the bottom of your water garden vessel and gently cover their roots with small pebbles or rocks to make the base of your water garden. You can do the same thing with semi-aquatic plants, or simply allow them to float.
• Add water. Once your plant’s roots are in place, gently fill your water garden with filtered fresh water, taking care not to disturb the placement of your submerged plants. Mind the water level so that the container doesn’t overflow. Also, keep your water temperatures cooler.
• Add floating plants. Once your water garden is full, you can add any floating plants to the water's surface.

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