Made by hand in Surry Hills
Hive Botanics is a small, independent studio making living glass gardens by hand. We make handmade terrariums, moss gardens under glass, and The Meadow, a DIY terrarium kit you build yourself, all made to order in Surry Hills, Sydney. Each piece is a small world of calm, built to be lived with and to keep changing over time.
The maker
Every Hive Botanics piece is made by Helen, the studio's founder. She builds each terrarium and Mossarium by hand, on a workbench in Surry Hills, choosing the moss, glass and stone piece by piece. Nothing is made in bulk. Each one is built once and built to keep, so no two are quite alike.
Helen works with the freshest moss she can find, which means the range shifts a little with the seasons, and she is happy to make something specific if you have a piece in mind. It is slow, careful work, and that is the point.
How each piece is made
Our terrariums are made to order rather than taken off a shelf, and a made-to-order piece usually comes together over about 3 to 5 days, layered by hand and settled before it goes out. The Mossarium collection is made ready to ship, and The Meadow arrives as a boxed kit with everything you need and an illustrated booklet to build it yourself. Our Mossariums and the Meadow kit are posted Australia-wide, while larger made-to-order terrariums are too large and delicate to post safely, so we arrange those individually when you get in touch.
Across the range you will find rainforest, orb and temperate terrariums, low round Mossariums on bases of cork, oak, concrete and marble, and the Meadow kit at $89. Many of the enclosed terrariums include springtails, nature's cleanup crew, which quietly aerate the soil and keep each little world in balance.
Made to be lived with
A terrarium is a living piece of nature, so it keeps changing after it leaves the bench. The moss grows, the glass fogs and clears, and small seasonal shifts are all part of it. We design our pieces to be low maintenance: the right spot in bright, indirect light and a little occasional misting is usually all they need, and our care guide walks you through the rest. Look after it simply and a terrarium can thrive for years.
Where we ship
We are based in Surry Hills. Our Mossariums and the Meadow kit are posted Australia-wide, with the exception of Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, which quarantine rules on live plants and soil place out of reach. Because our pieces contain living plants and soil, we ship within Australia only and cannot post overseas. Larger made-to-order terrariums are too large and delicate to post safely, so we arrange those individually when you get in touch. Everything we post is packed with care and sent straight to your door, or to someone else's as a gift with a card in your own words.
Whether it is a finished piece for your own desk, a kit to build on a slow afternoon, or a living gift for someone else, we would love to make something for you.