Awakening your senses through both visual and physical elements, sensory gardens are vibrant spaces that can be moulded to achieve a variety of functions.
Whether you’re looking to create a calming outdoor sanctuary, with secluded seating areas and hidden hideaways, to grand gravel-chip gardens enriched with vivid planting schemes, sensory gardens can be crafted to suit you and your families desires. Fabulous spaces for all ages to enjoy, sensory gardens are also incredibly inclusive and are adapted so that individuals of all abilities are better enabled to enjoy their natural surroundings. From planting choices to versatile landscaping solutions, let’s explore the beauty and benefits of transforming your outdoor space into a striking sensory garden.
Dynamic planting schemes
At the heart of every sensory garden lies a unique essence of vibrancy and density. When crafting a garden into a sensory haven, it can be argued that planting is one of the most crucial elements. With plants producing high sensory stimulation due to their delightful fragrances and colourful blooms, an expertly crafted planting scheme has the ability to truly bring your garden to life with planting personality and character.
A strong visual element, flowers are wonderful for filling your garden with unusual shades and tones, framing an enticing floral palette. Floral showstoppers such as Echinacea and Tulipa are two glorious examples of bold blooms that instantly catch your eye. A tapestry of wildflowers such as Ox-eye daisies, also enhances your garden with both colour and movement, attracting bundles of beneficial pollinators to roam throughout the garden. Ornamental grasses are another planting choice that our garden designers frequently include within our sensory schemes, as they sway beautifully when caught by a breeze, further encouraging a calming notion to glide effortlessly throughout our garden designs.
Water features
Almost hypnotic in their calming abilities, garden water features such as fountains, waterfalls and ponds, are a wonderful way of adding sound, movement and aesthetics to your garden scene. Soothing in nature, listening to the gentle trickle of softly falling water is a delightful way to relax both your mind and body. Shown to significantly increase mindfulness and well-being, having a water feature within your garden has also been found to reduce blood pressure and decrease stress levels. As you slowly guide your hand through a gently descending stream of water you refresh your senses with a crisp and cooling touch of chilled water.
Take a seat
There is no better way to truly immerse yourself within the sights and sounds of the garden than by sitting yourself down in a secluded seating area. As you enjoy an early morning coffee or a late afternoon refreshment, recline back and tune in to the trickling of water, hums of wildlife and rustles of a gentle breeze, sifting through a textured planting scheme. To add beautiful birdsongs to your garden ambience why not place a bird feeder or even bug hotel near your chosen area? Encouraging birds to bask within your open spaces, listen to their sweet songs whilst they take a quick dip or drink from a rustic bird bath.
Kitchen gardens
Awaken your tastebuds with the fresh and zingy flavours of home-grown produce. Higher in nutritional value and proven to be better tasting too, the fruits and vegetables produced from a kitchen garden are of the highest quality and therefore ensure to enhance all of your culinary creations. Grow an array of glorious garden herbs and bring your meals to life with the flavours of rosemary, basil, parsley and so many more. Harvest scrumptious fruits such as tomatoes and strawberries and boost your diet with fresh produce plucked straight from the kitchen garden. Edible garden flowers such as Violas are another charming planting addition that dress your garden scene with a sweet palette of bright blooms. Frozen within ice cubes or used as the finishing touch to a fresh garden salad, edible blooms are a delightful way of awakening both your tastebuds and outdoor spaces.
Elegant pathways and paving
When designing a sensory garden, our designers frequently establish a series of routes and gently sculpted garden pathways, that are crafted to blend seamlessly throughout the garden’s existing landscape. Topped with the finest gravel chips, using this material adds a delightful layer of texture throughout the garden. When walked over, listen in to the rustling of fine gravel gliding together. Creating a harmoniously relaxing garden sound, pathways and planting are a wonderful way of stimulating your mind and completing the idyllic look of your sensory garden scene.
Interested in creating your own sensory garden? Discover the endless opportunities of garden design.
