Coastal Gardens

Billowing agapanthus on the Isles of Scilly Image: Shutterstock/Andrew Roland

Dramatic, windswept, wild – coastal gardens are one of a kind. But exposure to strong winds, salty sea spray, and dry, sandy soils, can make the coast a harsh environment for plants.

Here are some simple ways to make the most of coastal conditions and create your perfect garden by the sea.

How to protect your coastal garden

Coastal flowers protected by cottage walls Image: Peter Turner Photography

Coastal gardens are often exposed to strong winds, making growing conditions difficult for plants. The first step toward getting the garden of your dreams is to install a suitable barrier to protect your space from the wind.

Avoid solid screens like walls and fences, which can cause turbulence. Instead, use something that can filter the wind and slow it down.Hedges, groups of trees and shrubs, or living willow screening will do the trick. Use them as a windbreak to create sheltered pockets within your garden. For a temporary fix, polypropylene webbing will make a suitable shelter belt or try artificial hedging .

How to nurture your coastal garden

Echium candicans (Pride of Madeira) grows well in coastal gardens Image: Shutterstock/Peter Turner Photography

If your soil is sandy it will be prone to drying out quickly and may be nutritionally poor. Higher levels of salt in the earth will also increase moisture loss. It’s important you incorporate lots of organic matter – such as well-rotted manure, compost and recycled green waste – into your soil before planting, to improve growing conditions. Adding flint, gravel or shingle will also help conserve moisture at the roots. br>
tabilise sandy banks by growing dense ground-cover plants such as Delosperma, Osteospermum or grasses – all of which will grow happily in poor soils. These will prevent your soil from blowing away in the wind.

Gather seaweed to feed to your plants. It makes a great natural fertiliser and can be dug straight into the soil once you have washed the salt from it.

What to grow in a coastal garden

Many plants will flourish in a coastal garden Image: Shutterstock/Neil Duggan

When it comes to choosing the best plants for your coastal garden there are a few things to bear in mind. Plants from naturally harsh environments are well suited to growing in coastal gardens. So look for plants with tough, leathery or hairy leaves, which prevent salt damaging the leaf surface, and also reduce moisture loss. Grasses are good coastal-garden plants as many have tough, narrow leaves, which are good at resisting the effects of wind, salt and dry conditions.

Coastal locations often have a mild climate allowing you to grow more exotic plants. Hardy palms will flourish in coastal areas of Southern Britain, while pretty Acacia dealbata will appreciate the frost-free conditions of many coastal gardens.

Find plants whose Latin name contains 'maritima' (of the sea) or 'littoralis' (of the shore) and you can be sure you’ve got a coastal plant that will be happy in your garden.

Look around at your neighbours’ gardens – or better still, talk to them – to get an idea of which plants grow well in your area.

Lastly, print out the table below, which lists some of the best coastal plants. Use it to decide which plants you want in your coastal garden.

Now you know how to protect, nurture and grow plants in your coastal garden. We’d love to see what you’ve achieved. Share photos of your gardens with us via our Facebook page.

The best plants for coastal gardens