A graceful glass container makes for a see-through tropical scene in a terrarium made by Mykel Newton, who has worked in the floral industry for years. Newton started concentrating on terrariums a year ago, striving to create exotic landscapes.

FRESNO, Calif. — Until six months ago, Trenton Suntrapak of Fresno, Calif., never had seen a terrarium before. Then his girlfriend gave him one as a gift.

He marveled at the small plants growing in the open glass cylinder. About 16 inches tall, the container includes a fern in soil, small rocks, moss ground cover and even a tiny house. But as an admirer of Japanese maples, he particularly likes the Ming aralia plant, which reminds him of the Asian trees.

"It was a very unique gift," said the 34-year-old, a general manager at a local billboard company. "I thought it was cool. I've tried bonsais (in the past) and have killed them pretty fast."

So far, the plants in the terrarium have thrived under his minimal care. The terrarium sits on his dining room table, where it can get natural, indirect sunlight.

"The tree is now growing over the top" of the jar, said Suntrapak, who waters the plants once a month. "I'm pretty impressed with myself."

Terrariums were all the rage 20 to 30 years ago. Now, these miniature gardens, which are great for small living spaces, are gaining a new generation of admirers because they are easy to create and maintain.

The glass containers we know as terrariums initially were called Wardian cases. They were named for Dr. Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward, a London surgeon who was interested in plant life, according to Allen and Stella Daley's book "Making & Using Terrariums & Planters" (Blandford Press, $19.95).

Before Ward, various containers were used to transport plants and seedlings across continents, with the earliest known used during Egyptian times, according to the Daleys.

In 1825, a horticulturist in Edinburgh used a glass case as a window garden, but he kept the idea to himself. Ward took the idea mainstream after he noticed a small fern and grass growing in a jar. The Wardian cases came in all shapes and sizes, often with ferns as the main plants. They became popular with the middle and upper Victorian classes.

In the 1970s and `80s, terrariums were a common sight. "You could find them everywhere, at flea markets and floral shops," said Mary Louise Newton of Fresno, who used to own a floral business and is a Fresno County Master Gardener. "We did big business with them."

Floral designer L'Adonna Redding remembers their popularity. "I was in a (floral) shop in Santa Cruz, Calif., in the 1970s and `80s," said Redding, who now works at Lou Gentile's Flower Basket in Fresno. "We did all types. They were fun. I thought they were interesting. We haven't done them in a long, long time."

She's not sure why they faded from the spotlight. "I think they just fell out of fashion," she said.

One thing Newton has noticed about the terrariums nowadays are the glass jars. "They're more elegant containers," she said.

Her granddaughter, Mykel Newton, makes terrariums out of various-shaped glass containers. Some are rounded like a fishbowl; others can be cylindrical like Suntrapak's.

"The ones I get asked a lot about now are those apothecary jars," said Newton, 29, of Fresno. "They're so unique."

And they're more decorative and entail less maintenance than houseplants.