A beautiful woodland edge begins long before you choose the plants. Start by looking at the shape, layers, and connection between your garden and the landscape beyond.
From the Garden:
While spending my vacation renovating a cottage surrounded by nature, amid wide-open meadows and by the lake that changed its colors every day, I felt a deep connection and a sense of calm that comes from being close to nature. That kind of feeling that seems to lower your stress levels almost without you even noticing.
After spending time in nature, you might notice more strongly that your garden is not just a separate plot of land. It is, and has always been, part of a bigger landscape. In suburban areas, you might not notice that so clearly. But if there are trees growing just beyond your property line, in your neighbor’s garden, or nearby park, or if you are lucky enough to live on a woodland edge, you can feel this connection much more deeply.
This deep connection to the natural landscape might be just a feeling, a mental state, but if you are living close to the woodland, or those big trees behind the boundary, why wouldn’t you highlight that connection, make your garden feel larger, and create a flow to the nature beyond?
The Design Note:
Before You Choose Plants for Your Woodland Edge, Look at This
Connecting the woodland beyond with your garden space does not start with planting. As I always say, the plants are just the icing on the cake. An essential part of the garden, yes, but planting design is the last thing in planning your yard. This is especially true when you want to create that effortless connection with the nature surrounding your landscape.
So forget the plants for a brief moment.
Instead, look at the edge, where your lawn might abruptly meet the woodland.
Truly look at where the garden ends and the woodland begins. What makes the edge harsh or abrupt at the moment?
Does your garden feel connected to the woodland, or do they still read as two separate landscapes?
This is the shift I want you to make before you start thinking about individual plants.
Look at the landscape first. Plants come later.
Related Reads:
- How To Merge The Forest in The Backyard With Your Garden
- A Dry Stone Wall from Inspiration to Landscaping
A Small Practice
Sit down on your garden bench or take a walk around your property.
Is there a clear connection to the surrounding wild nature beginning on your yard, or on the other side of your property line? If not, can you see any tree canopies beyond your site? In a park? On the neighbor’s side?
If so, consider ’borrowing’ them visually and making them feel like part of your own garden. Think of it in the same way you might borrow and frame a beautiful distant view. Figure out ways to naturally highlight the connection between your garden and the tree canopies beyond.
When you make this connection seamless, your garden space feels much larger. It gives you more space to breathe.
If You’d Like to Go Further
Being from the land of forests, it’s no wonder that many of my client projects include woodland edges, are surrounded by the woods, or are situated in a space that is still a forest when the design project begins. Creating this close connection and natural flow between garden and woodland has always been close to my heart.
If your garden meets woodland too, and you’d like guidance on creating a more natural transition between the two, this is exactly what I created The Woodland Edge Garden Kit for.
Inside, I’ll guide you step by step through the design process, from seeing and shaping the woodland edge to creating the layers and planting composition that bring the garden and woodland together.
And as I mentioned above, I don’t just want to give you a planting plan. I want to help you understand why the design works, so that you can apply the same principles to your own unique garden.
I’m currently inviting the first five gardeners to join as Founding Members with Early Access for $197 through August 31, or until all five places are filled.
→ Explore The Woodland Edge Garden Kit
A Question for You:
Does your garden connect to the surrounding landscape? If yes, what is it? Is it a wider scenery, woodland beyond your border, or trees growing close by?
Hit reply and tell me.
Sitting in the garden and sensing the flow from your own private plot of land to the wider natural world makes you feel connected and creates such a comforting sense of calm.
Garden wishes,
Your Garden Design Mentor
”Your garden is not just a separate plot of land.
It is... part of a bigger landscape.”
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