Coastal gardens

Oh, we do like to be beside the seaside! It’s a great place for plants and people – and although conditions can sometimes be challenging, they bring with them the opportunity to grow some amazing plants and explore a garden style that’s unlike any other.

Working with the wind

Grasses such as this Stipa cope well with windy conditions

Seaside gardens are almost always windy gardens, and that wind can often have an extra bite from the salt it carries. It might sound like a tough call, but there are many plants that grow brilliantly by the sea. As a general rule, plants with narrow, grass- or needle-like leaves, and those with silvery, leathery or waxy leaves will do well. But even with plants well adapted for the conditions, it pays to protect them while they are getting established, as wind can dry them out really quickly. The key is to use permeable windbreaks that filter the wind rather than simply channelling it elsewhere in the garden.

Expanded horizons

Many interesting and unusual plants thrive by the sea

Generally, gardens by the coast will be have higher light levels and be warmer in winter than those inland – this means you can grow an increased range of tender plants. Exotics such as bottlebrushes (Callistemon), Torbay palms (Cordyline) and daisy bushes (Olearia) sometimes struggle inland but will thrive in seaside gardens.

Callistemon rigidus

Eryngium 'Cobalt Star'

Get the seaside look

Found objects and themed furniture can enhance your coastal scheme

It’s a good idea to embrace the influence of the sea rather than fight it. Locally-sourced* pebbles and gravel will connect the garden to its wider surroundings and can act as a

Mulch is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil surface in late autumn to late winter (Nov-Feb). It is used to provide frost protection, improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, reducing water loss from the soil, for decorative purposes and suppressing weeds. Examples include well-rotted garden compost and manure, chipped bark, gravel, grit and slate chippings.

Dealing with poor soil

Lobelia laxiflora and Agave americana ‘Mediopicta Alba’

The soil in coastal gardens can often be very poor and free-draining as it tends to be either stony or sandy. Adding soil conditioner such as garden

Can refer to either home-made garden compost or seed/potting compost: • Garden compost is a soil improver made from decomposed plant waste, usually in a compost bin or heap. It is added to soil to improve its fertility, structure and water-holding capacity. Seed or potting composts are used for growing seedlings or plants in containers - a wide range of commercially produced peat-free composts are available, made from a mix of various ingredients, such as loam, composted bark, coir and sand, although you can mix your own.

*bought from a local builders merchant or supplier, rather than removed from the beach.