Collection

27 Exceptional Garden Plans Curated from Our Most Beloved Gardens

By Christine Alexander
Photo: Bill Noble

Get inspired and transform your green spaces with garden plans taken right from Fine Gardening’s most popular featured gardens. Each garden in this collection is a symphony of colors and textures carefully orchestrated to transform your outdoor space into a haven of natural beauty. Whether you’re drawn to the allure of meticulously prepared flower beds or the practicality of a flourishing kitchen garden, these designs cater to a spectrum of tastes and preferences.

Below you’ll find tried and tested planting plans for an array of regions and conditions including shade, sun, urban, rural, and everything in-between. These designs feature deftly selected plants which delineate spaces with grace and charm. And you don’t need to take our word for it. These plans are taken from real gardens so you can see the end results and not just an illustration.

You’ll also see planting ideas that will work for small gardens and which showcase how even the most modest spaces can be transformed into captivating retreats. These designs exemplify the belief that a well-thought-out garden, regardless of its size, can make a significant impact on your outdoor living experience. You can adapt the recipes to your own vision and create a space that is uniquely you!

Let these garden blueprints, born from the expertise of seasoned professionals, serve as your guide to cultivating a garden that flourishes.

 

 

Design
Perfect Plants for Slopes

We design gardens in northwestern Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills, and many of our clients’ properties have sections that are rocky and steep. Embracing the unique contours of each site, we have…
Design
A Garden Planting Plan That Utilizes Adaptable Plants

This plan represents a bed along a property fence between the west side of a house and a large canopy tree. The edge of the border is curved because I…
Design
A Seaside Garden Designed to Withstand Punishing Conditions

When Susan and Coleman Burke purchased land overlooking the bay on the Massachusetts island of Nantucket several decades ago, they were able to build their house and seaside garden from…

Video

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Design

Great Native Plants for Western Gardens

In his article Weaving Vignettes Together, horticulturalist Dan Johnson gives us a look into his home garden in Denver, where he uses repeated plant groupings and consistent hardscaping to unify…
Kitchen Gardening

How to Transplant
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 159: Plants That Take Sun and Shade   
Design

Touring an Eco-friendly, Shady Backyard Retreat
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 158: Plants That Earn Their Keep (with Irvin Etienne)