This is Cool

With the exception of some water added in 1972, a terrarium has been operating sealed for 63 years.

Of course, "Sealed," is a relative term.  The sunlight is a major external contributor, to the tune of 100s of thousands of kilowatt hours, over 63 years, of course.

Still, this is wicked neat:

In 1960 David Latimer got curious and decided to plant a glass bottle with seed. He would have never guessed it would turn into a beautiful case study of a self-sustaining sealed ecosystem that has been called “the world’s oldest terrarium.”

In fact, after all these years, David’s sealed bottle garden is still thriving and robust. With thriving plant life, despite not watering it since 1972.

David planted the terrarium back in 1960 by placing a quarter pint of water and compost in the ten-gallon bottle. He then lowered in spiderworts seeding with a wire. Finally, sealing it and put it in a corner filled with sun. Letting mother nature do its thing through photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis puts moisture and oxygen in the air through the plants.  The humidity then builds and begins to rain back down on the plants.  Leaves will also fall and rot, producing carbon dioxide that the plants need for nutrition.

It’s a beautiful example of how nature can support itself.

Larimer did open the bottle in 1972 to water the plant. But, since then, it has remained sealed without fresh water or air.

For some reason, this story just makes me feel good.