Will rainforest terrariums become the next big thing in the home gardening market?
In recent years, as the floral industry has gradually shifted toward the home gardening market, more and more floral products suitable for the home have continued to emerge, from combination potted plants and green walls to micro-landscapes, with each star product creating more momentum than the last. Around 2013, rainforest terrariums began to appear in China, and after several years of market groundwork, they began to enter the view of floral operators and consumers.
Rainforest terrariums evolved from saltwater tanks and aquatic plant tanks, and possess inherent advantages for entering the home. They combine elements such as aquatic plants, flowers, and animals, driving the development of some minor flower varieties such as bromeliads, air plants (Tillandsia), carnivorous plants, epiphytic orchids, and mosses, enriching the application forms of potted flowers, and winning the affection of young people. Due to their short development time and limited promotional efforts, rainforest terrariums are still in a niche market category, mostly popular within enthusiast circles, but with their unique ornamental appeal, the future development prospects and existing promotional obstacles of rainforest terrariums have still aroused more people's thinking and exploration.
Rise --- Forum fever drives "rainforest fever"
Rainforest terrarium, as defined by Baidu Baike, is "a setup that uses tropical rainforest floor, mid-level, and even canopy plants as the main scenery, combined with dead wood, stones, vines, etc., to create a corner of the jungle, or a waterside jungle scene. In order to reflect the vividness of the landscape, tiny animals such as insects, lizards, and frogs are also kept inside, but there are also examples that are purely plant-based landscapes dotted with animal models." However, having a landscape alone is only superficial; behind it is an ecosystem capable of sustaining these plants and animals, including lighting, temperature, humidity, ventilation, and microorganisms, fully displaying the tropical rainforest ecosystem, which is what is called rainforest landscaping.
When speaking of rainforest terrariums, one cannot help but mention the Micro Rainforest Forum. Four years ago, this forum was established by enthusiasts and was the first to propose the concept of "tropical rainforest ecological landscaping." Currently, the forum has about 50,000 registered members and has successfully held two Micro Rainforest Landscaping Competitions.
Most of China is located in the temperate zone, and the flowers seen are all common temperate plants, but the tropics are the main base of plants, with many beautiful plants that could not be kept alive domestically before due to the lack of relevant equipment and experience. Later, senior players on the Micro Rainforest Forum drew inspiration from the way "plant hunters" transported plants during the era of the British Empire's Age of Sail, and began to introduce some simple equipment and concepts. At the time, the goal was simply to keep tropical plants alive in temperate regions, but later they discovered that the tropical flair brought by these plants was unmatched by other landscaping styles. "In addition, during this period, aquatic plant landscaping also developed very rapidly, and rainforest landscaping adopted some concepts and methods from aquatic plant landscaping, transforming from simply keeping plants alive to indoor plant landscaping," said Shen Qi (online name Supu), the forum's general moderator, introducing the development process of tropical rainforest landscaping. Previously, landscaping was divided into saltwater landscaping and aquatic plant landscaping. After the emergence of rainforest terrariums, tropical rainforest landscaping became the third major category of landscaping, and as a landscaping style that allows one to appreciate "flowers," it formed a three-way rivalry with the former two.
Beijing Yueshang Natural Ecological Landscaping Hall mainly deals in custom rainforest terrariums, aquatic plant tanks, ecological green plant walls, micro-landscapes, and other businesses. Its head, Luo Jingxue (online name Pulan), is one of the founders of the China Landscaping Designers Alliance. The alliance was spontaneously formed by China's top landscaping designers, focusing on the dissemination and promotion of aquatic plant landscaping culture, and its members have won awards multiple times at world aquatic landscaping competitions. Luo Jingxue and other members have together undertaken landscape renovation projects for the Beijing Aquarium and the China Open. Familiar with various landscaping styles, Luo Jingxue believes that compared with saltwater tanks and aquatic plant tanks, rainforest terrariums have more advantages: saltwater tanks are the most difficult to maintain later, aquatic plant tanks are next, and rainforest terrariums are the simplest, because their misting, lighting, ventilation, and other systems are all automatic, making operation relatively simple. At the same time, rainforest terrariums contain plants and animals from water, land, and air spaces, making the landscape layers more rich. In addition, rainforest terrariums can release oxygen, purify air, and increase air humidity. "If the tropical rainforest is the 'lungs of the Earth,' then a rainforest terrarium placed at home can be called the 'lungs of the home,'" said Luo Jingxue.
Currently, rainforest terrariums are mostly customized according to customer requirements, with both desktop-sized products and large products that can cover an entire wall, and they can also be combined with some furniture. Depending on the plant species and tank size, the cost ranges from several thousand yuan to several hundred thousand yuan. "The landscape extension space of rainforest terrariums is very large; it can be a tiny space or infinitely enlarged. In addition, rainforest terrariums do not have high requirements for the external environment. Even in desert areas, as long as the internal environment of the tank meets the requirements, those rainforest plants can still grow very well," said Luo Jingxue.
Later-stage maintenance is a characteristic of rainforest landscaping. Shen Qi and his friend ziv_yao (online name) set up "Pandora Planet Landscaping Studio," which has already undertaken quite a few projects. He explained that rainforest terrariums are seasonal, and maintenance work is also carried out according to the seasons. For example, in the hot and humid summer, misting time should be appropriately reduced to prevent root rot in plants; in winter, because animals need heating, misting time should be increased; in some areas where plum rain season occurs, ventilation time should be increased; if customers choose fast-growing plants, pruning frequency needs to be increased; if customers grow tired of looking at the same scenery for a long time, some plants can be replaced on a small scale to maintain freshness. Depending on tank size and customer requirements, the general maintenance frequency is once every one to two months.
Development --- High attention brings rapid growth
It is precisely because rainforest terrariums have the above advantages that market attention has been very high in the past two years, and development has been rapid. "In 2015, when we went to Shanghai to participate in the 19th China International Pet and Aquarium Supplies Exhibition, we were the only ones displaying rainforest terrariums, and many people came to inquire; in 2016, when we went to Guangzhou to participate in the International Aquarium Exhibition, there were already twenty or thirty exhibitors displaying products related to rainforest terrariums," Luo Jingxue said with emotion about how fast rainforest terrariums have developed in the past two years.
Shen Qi felt the same way: "At first, rainforest terrariums mainly appeared in first- and second-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chengdu. Now other cities are also seeing more of them, the number of studios is increasing, and many people have gone from being enthusiasts to full-time professionals."
According to statistics from the Micro Rainforest Forum, among people currently working with rainforest terrariums, 25% transitioned from aquatic plant enthusiasts, 10% previously worked in the floral industry, and 20% were reptile enthusiasts; in terms of age, most are between 30 and 40 years old, with relatively high education levels and income; those aged 20 to 30 come next, and people over 40 are fewer.
With the rise and development of rainforest terrariums, the rainforest plant market has also continued to enrich and grow. In addition to commonly used ferns and mosses, varieties such as bromeliads, air plants (Tillandsia), carnivorous plants, epiphytic orchids, climbing vines, and Gesneriaceae have gradually entered the public view, and some varieties occasionally enjoy a brief surge in popularity, such as the "black pineapple" that swept the internet in 2015, which is a type of bromeliad.
NealCaffrey's (online name) Taobao shop "Qiqi's Private Garden" currently only imports pure rainforest plants, with annual sales of more than 1 million yuan. Import sources include nearby Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka, as well as distant countries such as the United States and New Zealand. "I opened the Taobao shop in 2012, when rainforest plants were still relatively few and prices were relatively high. Now the prices of some varieties are more affordable and can be accepted by the public more quickly," said shop owner NealCaffrey.
Post-90s young man Zhou Yulai was the first to introduce rainforest plants into the Beijing flower market. In early 2015, he opened a shop at the Beijing Fourth Ring Flower and Tree Center, selling products such as bromeliads, air plants (Tillandsia), and carnivorous plants. In May 2016, at the China International Flower and Horticulture Exhibition, he brought rainforest terrariums to exhibit, which was the first time rainforest terrariums appeared in a professional floral exhibition. It can be said that Zhou Yulai witnessed the rise and development of the rainforest market.
"When I first started working with rainforest plants, many people did not recognize them, and we needed to educate consumers about these novel varieties over and over again. Now there is more information about rainforest plants online, consumers have a more comprehensive understanding of the products, and more people have begun to excitedly say that there is actually such a small shop in Beijing specializing in rainforest plants," said Zhou Yulai. However, he believes that compared with the traditional floral industry, rainforest plants are limited by objective circumstances such as their diverse varieties and their niche, specialized consumer group, and in the short term they are still only a very small branch of the entire floral industry, requiring a process of growth and accumulation. In 2017, in order to provide more and better-quality rainforest plants, Zhou Yulai invested in building a modern greenhouse of several thousand square meters in Panggezhuang Town, Daxing District, Beijing, to produce high-quality rainforest plants, and simultaneously opened a Taobao shop called "Banyuan," selling plants and materials related to rainforest terrariums.
Equipment has also developed as rapidly as rainforest plants. "When I first started making rainforest terrariums, the outer tanks were modified from other types of landscape tanks, such as converting reptile tanks into rainforest terrariums, and some glass thicknesses did not quite meet requirements. In addition, misting and lighting equipment were not professional either, and sometimes the fans used were even removed from computer cases," said Luo Jingxue. Now some manufacturers have seen market demand and begun producing equipment specifically for rainforest terrariums. For example, the well-known domestic pet equipment design and manufacturing brand "Xinpai Pet," after its head saw the market prospects of rainforest landscaping two years ago, launched a series of professional rainforest ecological products and is preparing to make rainforest ecological landscaping a key development segment of the company.
Problems --- Three thresholds make promotion difficult
At present, the domestic rainforest terrarium market is still in an early stage of development, and it is estimated that it will take two to three years or even more before it becomes well known to the mass market. Some existing problems in this market are also more or less hindering its development.
First, rainforest terrariums are relatively expensive, deterring some ordinary consumers. "Take a standard tank of 60 cm x 45 cm x 60 cm as an example. The overall cost of the hardware facilities is several thousand yuan, and that does not even include the plants inside, so many consumers are very cautious, especially some middle-aged and elderly consumers, who are reluctant to spend several thousand yuan," said Wu Lin (online name Lin), who is building the "Chengyuan Ecological Landscape" design experience center at Chengde Easyhome. In addition, installing a rainforest terrarium has certain space requirements, which also sets a threshold for consumers.
Second, the quality of practitioners varies greatly. "Some merchants are extremely unprofessional and do not even understand the most basic knowledge of plants and animals. They just came in because they saw money to be made, and there are often cases of misuse of plants and animals," one practitioner said angrily. Generally speaking, if maintained regularly, a tropical rainforest landscape can last for several years, while some practitioners only care about whether it looks good when landscaping, not whether the plants live or die, so the landscape can only last a few days. This kind of "flower arrangement" work misleads consumers' understanding of rainforest terrariums. Shen Qi feels helpless about this phenomenon: "When we hold the Micro Rainforest Landscaping Competition, in the judging criteria, the planting position, method, and condition of the plants account for a large proportion of the score. This is precisely because we hope to popularize the correct methods and guide merchants to value the sustainability of rainforest landscapes rather than making 'flower arrangement' works."
Third, the standards of the rainforest landscaping industry still need to be improved, and the equipment is not complete enough. In terms of software, there are still no standards for which animals and plants to choose, their planting positions or keeping conditions, and how to maintain them; in terms of hardware equipment, there are no specifications or standards for tank height, misting facilities, or supplementary lighting systems. "Many people are greedy for cheapness and use aquatic plant tank lights to keep rainforest terrariums, but because rainforest terrariums are taller and terrestrial plants have a much higher demand for light than aquatic plants, rainforest plants kept under inferior lights will fade, become leggy, turn yellow, or even die," said Shen Qi. "So I have always been advocating the marketization of rainforest equipment and have published articles on the Micro Rainforest Forum discussing the specifications and technical parameters of misting and lighting systems used in rainforest terrariums, precisely in the hope that rainforest equipment can become more standardized and professional."
Shen Qi believes that at present, the rainforest landscaping industry is still at a small-scale stage, practitioners are not united enough, and it has not yet reached the stage where "many hands make the fire burn high," making it difficult to attract capital. In addition, there are currently relatively few people paying attention to rainforest landscaping, relying mainly on word of mouth through forums, WeChat Moments, and QQ groups, and lacking promotional channels.
Luo Jingxue believes that this year and next year will be the explosive period for the rainforest terrarium market, and the year after that will enter an elimination period. After all, rainforest terrariums look easy to get started with, but doing them well is not easy. Only after being tested by the market can high-quality merchants remain, and the market will then usher in healthy development.