General > Assisted Gardening

Sensory garden

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Unwashed:
I've got involved in planning a sensory garden.  Can you suggest some appropriate plants?

nilly71:
I have Lavander, sage and lemon balm. As I walk past the I always brush my hands over them and use the lemon balm for tea.

Neil

irnhed:
Definately second the Lavender.  I put it into each area I'm in.  Love the stuff almost as much as the bees do.

We have Lemon Balm at home, and use it in Mojitos in the sunshine.  Oh, happy days.

Rosemary as well - can be strongly scented.  Herbs can also be good for taste, if little bits can be nibbled.  Same with nasturtiums, which are great to look at, and edible.

For the sound side of things, a bamboo would be lovely - but in a container in order to control it.  Other long grasses would be great, gently swishing in the wind.

Also for sound, a fuscia would be great for 'popping' when ready.

For touch, different barks would be interesting (space permitting).  Comparing a smooth birch, with a nobbly ash (can you tell I was on a 'Pole Lathe' woodworking course recently?) would be great.  If not actual trees, then logs that can be place side-by-side for comparison perhaps.  If you dig them in, and place them vertically, you can create an underground habitat for stag beetle larvae as well.

ACE:
Is this for the blind? I have a reason for asking as we built a garden for a blind society a few years ago. We were surprised to find most of the blind people were in fact partially sighted and had afflictions like tunnel vision etc. So as well as all the touchy feely, strong scents etc don't forget to put some really strong colours in.

I did a sensory corner in a public park last century. Me being me, I included a streak of danger and put some milk thistle in. People were warned on the opening day and they loved the anticipation of not being in a clinical enviroment.

Spudbash:
Funnily enough, I've just got home from my first-ever visit to a hospital therapy garden. My mother is at West Berkshire Community Hospital and the garden there is principally aimed at those with limited mobility. We've spent an hour in the sunshine, my mother in a wheelchair following her recent stroke. We agreed that, for all its lovely features, it would be better with an apple tree.

So I'm thinking that for a sensory garden that could be appreciated by the blind/partially-sighted, apple cordons might be good bet: they fruit at a height at which you can smell the blossom and what could be more sensory than the chance to pluck your own ripe, juicy apple and sink your teeth into it? The fruits swell and ripen over a long period, so there would be the opportunity to stroke them as they grow. I think you'd need varieties that cling to the tree for dear life, rather than dropping off the minute they're ripe, and preferably ones with bright colouration or an interesting texture - ie russets of some kind. I wonder if Brogdale (National Fruit Collections) would advise on suitable varieties?

Looking forward to reading other suggestions..  :)

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