Coastal and seaside gardens have their special charm, a relaxed feel that can’t be described with words. Designing such a garden seems to be easy but that’s not so and creating one you’ll have to consider many more factors than with a usual garden. Let me help you with that.
Factors To Consider
You will have to consider altitude, latitude, aspect, especially on sloping sites, southerly, northerly, etc, soil, salt (laden air can effect some plant species as far inland as five miles), prevailing wind, openness, distance from the coast and if it’s close, then warming and cooling sea currents. Sometimes, even if the coast is close, there are no extremes, and a wider range of plants is available. The climate is very important, too, as it will affect the plant choice immensely.
The border is made of seashells to add a coastal feel to the space. It's really a spectacular solution!.
Bold plants and cacti make the garden bed jaw-dropping, with lots of texture and various green shades.
Mix up pebbles with seashells to embrace the seaside location. Seashells can be also a cool option to make garden borders.
This is a minimal version of a coastal garden with greenery and grasses and some lawn.
This seaside garden is close to the sea, that's why it's designed mainly with grasses and shrubs.
This amazing lush garden includes lots of native blooms like chamomiles and a tree and looks just wow.
The seaside garden is bright and lush, filled with greenery, white and purple blooms that echo with the exterior house walls.
Don't hesitate to rock lavender in a coastal garden, it will make your space fresh, lively and scented.
Lavender is one of the best coastal plants as it can withstand the climate and will fill the garden with color and aroma.
The relaxed contemporary space shows off trees, grasses and harscaping done with gravel and stones.
Coastal Garden Features
Modern coastal gardens are characterized by a soft and muted color palette with white, light grey and blues. If you want vibrant colors, consider coral and turquoise that will mimic sea shades.
Native plants that are salt air and wind-tolerant and can withstand sandy soils, are a must. Local plants are always well-adapted, so you won’t have to maintain them too much.
Natural materials are perfect to style a seaside garden while giving it a relaxed look and highlight the coastal style. Seashells, driftwood and stone can be used to make garden borders, patio decor and other stuff.
Succulents and greenery are great to style a coastal garden if the climate is warm enough.
The beautiful coastal garden is Mediterranean, with citrus trees, greenery and a path with seashells and pebbles.
This fresh nook is styled with greenery, shrubs and blooming groundcovers.
The lush space is covered with groundcovers, greenery, shrubs and trees, this is a seaside garden that isn't close to the coast.
The coastal space is done with trees, grasses, rocks and creamy sand. This is a more modern version of a seaside garden.
Rocks, neutral sand, grasses, groundcovers are all the elements of this coastal garden.
If the sea is close, choose grasses and go for hardscaping with pebbles and gravel.
If blooms can't survive in your coastal garden, choose blooming groundcovers.
Grasses are the most low-maintenance plants for coastal gardens, and you can rock as many of them as you want.
Coastal Garden Plants
There are those gardens which are right next to the coast where the plants have to be able to tolerate salt laden winds. Think of the tough grasses you see growing on sand dunes and headlands.
Sea Thrift, Beach Rose, Sea Holly, Lavender, Crambe Maritima, Rosa rugosa, Cotoneaster horizontalis, Crocosmia, Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae Rhamnoides), Echium Vulgare, rosemary, Fleabane, Broad-Leaved Statice, Cabbage Plam, Blue Fescue, mullein – these are only some plants you can incorporate into your coastal garden. As a general rule, look for plants with smaller or leathery or hairy leaves as these are better suited to more adverse conditions.
The lawn is paired with various grasses, succulents and a blooming tree, this is a more refined coastal garden.
The lush space is done with a gravel path that is lined up with grass and blooms.
The relaxed space features a neutral color palette, some trees, grasses and flowers.
This lovely fire bowl nook is done with grasses and greenery, a curved wooden bench that invites to take a seat.
This is a driftwood art with an old clock, lavender and seashells and pebbles.
This is a coastal fire bowl space surrounded with grasses and flowers that are local for the area.
This is a coastal front yard with greenery, grasses and local trees, it looks neutral and relaxed.
Skip gravel and use broken shells to hardscape your coastal garden.
Some blooms and grasses will make your garden beautiful and relaxed.
If your garden is that close to the sea, choose only native plants as other won't withstand the conditions.
Coastal Garden Decor
As we mentioned above, seashells and driftwood are those natural materials that you can easily gather on the beach and incorporate into your garden decor to make it feel seaside-like. Cover the garden borders with seashells or seashells and pebbles together. Make decor of driftwood or use it for designing some furniture. You can also use some pieces to embrace the location, for example, an old boat as a planter or decor feature.
The coastal garden is styled with native plants including bright flowers and a boat filled with pebbles is a beautiful art.
A basket with seashells and grasses is a cool solution for a coastal farmhouse garden.
Rosemary planted in a basket with a fish is a lovely coastal garden or terrace decoration.
The lush space shows off various shrubs, bold leafy plants and a subtle tree. (via homestolove).
Using driftwood and stone to decorate a coastal garden is a win-win idea: they are natural, budget-friendly and highlight the style. (via lawnknowledge).
If you can choose bright plants, do it! Bold blooms and plants of all kinds will infuse your outdoor space with color and texture. (via homestolove).
Grasses are perfect for coastal spaces, and this large tree seems to withstand the conditions well, too. (via homestolove).
The border is composed of seashells, and this is a delicate seaside touch to a regular garden. (via diygarden).
This is a creamy beach garden done with gravel, stone and rocks, and as for plants, they aren't many: greenery, blooms and grasses.
Succulents will add dimension and shape to the garden, and tall shrubs will be a nice pair for them.
The modern coastal garden features groundcovers, shrubs, large succulents and some blooms.
I love this hardscaping done with sand, pavers and seashells, and grasses and groundcovers refresh it.
Make various arrangements with seashells, for example, fill a tray with shells and put a candle on top.
The pebbles are mixed with seashells to create a garden path, and it adds a coastal feel to the space.
The planter is covered with seashells, and such a piece is a cool option for both indoors and outdoors.
Make seashell paths in your coastal garden, they can be lined up with stones or rocks to keep the shells in place.