Tovah Martin - The New Terrarium

Tovah Martin, one of America's favorite gardeners, recently came to speak at The HSNY Library. She was promoting her newest book, The New Terrarium, and gave a wonderful
visual presentation on the world of gardens under glass. If you live in the city but want to be close to nature, are confined to an office all week or need the soothing touch of the natural world...a terrarium is the perfect solution.

Plants have been growing under glass since the early 1800's. The British garden writer J.C. Loudon, in his 1822 classic Encyclopedia of Gardening, urged the garden world to make use of these 'hand-glasses' as an 'essential tool of gardening'. The same holds true today, when encased in glass plants thrive with almost no help from the outside world. It's amazing how a terrarium can transform even the smallest corner of your space, by giving it a burst of vibrant green life.

Tovah also gave a hands-on demonstration of how easy it is to transform even the simplest of things, like a glass pitcher, into a lively and whimsical indoor garden. Her book is written with clear and simple step-by-step instructions and inspiring photographs to guide you along the way.

A Wardian case with a deep base simplifies planting directly in the case.

This ode to spring under glass includes white wood hyacinth (right) and lily-of-valley with glory-of-the-snow (left).

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Come join us at The Horticultural Society of New York on June 13, 2009, for a workshop with Tovah Martin on how to build your own wonderful garden under glass. Check our website, hsny.org, as the date draws near for more information on Tovah's workshop.

*The New Terrarium, Tovah Martin

Photographs by Kindra Clineff