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Small or large, green spaces provide us with many benefits, including areas to entertain, relax, play and learn. And every plant-filled place is, to some degree, a ‘sensory’ one thanks to its colours, textures, perfumes and various sounds. A true sensory garden, however, intentionally includes elements to nurture, nourish and engage the five senses. Here are our ideas for a sensory garden that’s just right for you.
Tip: Always wear the appropriate safety equipment (safety glasses, ear muffs and a mask, for example) and always follow the instructions for the product or equipment.
A fragrance has an incredible capacity to linger in the mind, allowing not just recall but creating new, special moments. Perfumed flowers are the best way to add waves of fragrance. Ideally, select plants that flower at different times so the aromas don’t clash. Some of our favourites are the Michelias (now included with magnolias) and classic repeat-flowering roses. The native murraya blooms a number of times a year and makes a great hedge or screen. And don’t forget the divine perfume of citrus blossoms!
Fragrance isn’t just in flowers though. Plants with oil-rich leaves, such as lavender and rosemary, will release their scent when you brush against them, so position them close to pathways. Lavender releases its relaxing essential oils into the air on hot days, leaving just a hint drifting on the breeze.
Plants offer many rich foliage colours. The colour palette of the greens alone is enormous, but there are also burgundy hues, greys, blues and silvers, and variegated foliage with stripes or spots. All can be used to delight the eye, drawing attention to different areas in your therapeutic garden. And don’t forget deciduous trees, such as the Japanese maple, that change colour with the seasons.
As well as foliage colour, plants can provide visual texture. The leaves of Elephant ear (Colocasia sp) are large and gently rounded, the native mat rush (Lomandra hystrix) has a fountain-like form while the native kidney-weed (Dichondra) grows as a lush, carpet-like groundcover.
Then, of course, there are the flowering plants. Select plants that flower across different seasons so there’s always something to enjoy. Choose a colour range that works for your needs – whites, blues and soft pastels tend to be soothing while more vibrant colours are mentally and emotionally stimulating.
Passing a hand over a petal or leaf can be grounding, so place plants you can touch within easy reach, perhaps near a door or gate. Select plants with different textures on their leaf surfaces and edges – close your eyes so you really focus on feeling them. Well-cropped, low hedges of buxus can be patted or you can run your hand along them as you walk by, while plants with long, slender foliage are lovely to caress. A smooth gum or crepe myrtle tree trunk feels wonderful to the touch. A pebbly path can provide a wonderful massage as you walk barefoot (try rounded pebbles of around 10mm) and a bindii-free lawn is always best experienced barefoot.
There is something very special about wandering through a garden and tasting from plants as you go, whether it’s a leaf or two of refreshing mint or a sun-warmed orange straight from the tree. Strawberries are a fabulous treat, especially if you have kids. They are super easy to grow in elevated beds or large pots, look lovely as a garden plant with fabulous visual and tactile foliage texture and carry gorgeous little flowers followed by lush fruit.
You may hear wind gently rustling leaves but there are plenty of other ways to enhance a garden’s aural appeal. Create a sensory garden by adding features that generate white noise and can mask unwanted sounds like traffic, noisy neighbours and other distractions that may reduce the ability to relax in your outdoor space. Increasing the density of plants in your garden increases the habitat for birdlife, which in turn increases the likelihood of a garden filled with birdsong! Many of the medium-sized grevilleas are ideal for this, as they flower abundantly and have great foliage texture to boot.
One of the most effective ways to introduce sound is with a water feature. Horticulturist and water feature specialist David Ting, from The Garden Guide, says moving water has many sensory layers. “As the ever-changing patterns of light, along with the meditative effective of the water and the sound allow you to gently focus, other external noises just fade away,” he says.
Landscaping materials can play a part, too. Walking along a pebble pathway, for example, produces scrunching sounds that are rhythmic, gentle and somehow oddly satisfying.
Sensory elements are increasingly being used in public areas as an integral part of therapeutic gardens. According to therapeutic horticulture specialist Cath Manuel, sensory gardens provide opportunities to feel the therapeutic benefits of nature. “This can reduce stress and anxiety while calming the nervous system,” she says.
Such designed spaces help to reinforce what the experts call ‘sensory integration’. This is a natural process that helps us understand the spaces, and the greater world, around us. Sometimes the senses can be out of balance, de-sensitised or hyper-sensitive. So it’s important to understand the needs of who will be using the garden. For example, a garden used by an elderly person who has memory-related issues could include ‘memory trigger’ plants. Smell is our most primal sense, connecting directly to the area of the brain responsible for basic emotions and instincts. This means the right scents can trigger deep memories and emotions – something as simple as the perfume of a rose or the smell of newly mown lawn can bring back welcome waves of memories. Conversely, neurodivergent people, particularly those on the autism spectrum, can be overstimulated by a range of elements. Consider who will be visiting the garden and plan its layout, access, colours and sounds accordingly. There’s a world of plants out there waiting to meet every sensory need.
Check out these options to help you grow a garden that looks, feels, tastes, sounds and smells fabulous.
Sensory superstars
Enticing edibles
Hero hedges
Great groundcovers
Take care when selecting your sensory garden plants as some can be poisonous to children and pets, and check their suitability for your region, as some may be classified as weeds in certain states and territories.
Learn how a neurodivergent family of four designed their home to suit everyone’s needs.
Photo credit: Adam Woodhams, Alex Reinders
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When following our advice in our D.I.Y. videos, make sure you use all equipment, including PPE, safely by following the manufacturer’s instructions. Check that the equipment is suitable for the task and that PPE fits properly. If you are unsure, hire an expert to do the job or talk to a Bunnings Team Member.
