The outlook for our planet remains as uncertain as ever: the threat of extreme weather and wildfires grows, wildlife is pushed further to the margins, while our precious soils and watercourses fall victim to unprecedented erosion and pollution.
But food is one area where consumers can take control. Whether taking pains to research where our food comes from and committing to sourcing it ethically, or opting to grow more food at home, the power’s in our hands folks! Gardeners are well placed to lead the charge. We can choose to grow healthy, nutritious food organically. We can build fertile, resilient soil. And we can do our bit for local wildlife; gardens can become nature-friendly refuges that feed man and beast.
A Garden Planner for Everyone
The Garden Planner, now in it’s 13th year, has already helped thousands of gardeners across the world to successfully grow food at home. Tailored to your local climate using a network of more than 5,000 weather stations, the Garden Planner uses powerful features such as crop rotation, succession cropping and companion planting to help you grow in step with nature while also boosting harvests.
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A well-planned garden will reward you in many ways
No two gardeners are alike. Some prefer well-ordered rows and others see beauty in the organized ‘chaos’ of a potager-style garden. Which is why the Garden Planner’s many crops, flowers and garden objects enable you to create a garden that is as unique as you are. Have fun (genuine fun, trust me!) drawing out vegetable beds, dropping in your plants then moving everything around to your heart’s content until you’ve got the perfect layout.
No matter what style of garden you prefer, the Garden Planner’s got you covered. But don’t take my word for it. Here are just a few real-world garden plans created using the Garden Planner.
Community Garden Plan
This community garden plot in Lochem, The Netherlands, includes paths to easily access all beds, a sizeable area for fruits and a healthy composting setup, complete with comfrey for homemade liquid feeds and improving soil fertility. Extensive use of green manures should help maintain soil health.
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A community garden plot can produce prodigious quantities of fruits and vegetables
Potager Garden Plan
Potagers combine flowers and edibles to create a picture-perfect kitchen garden that’s both useful and beautiful. This potager garden plan in Denbighshire, Wales, uses flowering plants such as lavender, marigold and camomile to line the pebble pathways, attracting beneficial bugs and creating quite a show in the process. By segregating vegetables by plant family this gardener has made crop rotation a lot simpler.
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Get creative and dream up your ideal ornamental edible garden
Roof Garden Plan
Not everyone has the luxury of ground space. This rooftop garden in Mexico City solves this challenge by using grow sacks to cultivate a wide range of vegetables, including carrots, leafy greens, salads, beans, garlic and onions, and fruiting vegetables like tomatoes and squash.
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The sky's the limit when dreaming of your perfect garden
School Garden Plan
A love of gardening can be sown from an early age. In this Los Angeles school garden a wide range of plants is used to get the kids hooked! Fruit trees and a pergola of grapes offer shade and something to pick. There’s a three sisters bed of corn, squashes and beans, while a herb spiral is sure to offer a sensory journey of sights, smells, and sounds courtesy of the many bees that will visit.
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Kids will love learning in this school garden
Traditional Garden Plan
Wicker-edged beds lend a rustic feel to this sizeable garden in Northamptonshire, England, with espalier apples fringing one side of it. There’s a fruit cage to keep the birds off and a greenhouse to guarantee reliable harvests of warmth-loving crops, including ginger.
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Rustic and productive combine in this ambitious garden plan
Square Foot Garden Plan
Switching on SFG mode enables plans to be laid out according to the principles of Square Foot Gardening, so even more produce may be crammed in. This garden in Lexington, Kentucky beautifully demonstrates the potential. Vertical interest has been added with arches to support melons, squash and grapes, obelisks of beans, and pergolas cloaked in vining tomatoes.
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Small is beautiful with Square Foot Gardening
Explore Some More
All of the plans above have been shared by real Garden Planners. You can feast your eyes on hundreds more remarkable plans up on our Garden Plans Gallery – there are some mouthwatering examples up there! Thank you to everyone who shares their plans to inspire others. We love looking at them. Happy dreaming and planning everyone!
