Mesocosm Lab
The IB are not the first to think of making a mesocosm. Bill Latimer set one up in his living room in 1960 and hasn't watered it since 1973. See the whole story here. There are other places where mesocosms have been developed, like Biosphere II laboratory or the University of Birmingham who are using mesocosm experiments in drought research. What will these plants, and animals need to be able to survive without holes...