Sit back, close your eyes and get to know your garden. It might sound unconventional, but taking a non-visual approach is the subject of an inspiring new book by garden designer and author, Jenny Hendy.
In Creating a Garden of the Senses (Aquamarine, £16.99) Hendy explores the ways in which texture, sound, taste and scent can be used to create an outdoor haven. "I think if you're a sighted person, you can't help but be firstly motivated by what you'
re seeing," she says. "But as you get more into gardening, there's a contemplative side that comes in – especially when you're doing quite mundane tasks like weeding. Your conscious mind switches off and you just allow yourself to almost merge with the garden. I think that's when you start to be aware of all the other stuff that's going on."
Hendy points out that gardens offer a lot more opportunities for sensory experience than indoor settings. The scent of roses, the breeze on your skin, the taste of freshly picked strawberries, leaves rustling and the touch of smooth stone pebbles are just a few examples of how our gardens work on all of our senses. Scent is perhaps one factor that lots of gardeners do take seriously. Fragrant climbers such as jasmine or honeysuckle, shrubs like Daphne odora and roses can be combined with old-fashioned sweet peas, lavender and a freshly mown lawn to create a tapestry of fragrance. "I think scent works on a subliminal level as well," says Hendy. "You get that blend of fresh air mixed with the smell of damp earth, of foliage, and overlaying that all of the different scents of flowers."
Sometimes scent can be surprising – many of us will be familiar with the rich smell of chocolate cosmos, but what about a sage that smells of blackcurrants (Salvia microphylla var microphylla) or one that smells of pineapple (Salvia elegans "Scarlet Pineapple")? These fragrances aren't just designed to impress gardeners, they exist to attract pollinating insects. Hendy singles out petunias, perhaps not the most spectacular of bedding plants, for special mention. "Certain petunias, particularly the darker veined ones, have gorgeous heady perfumes," she says. "Petunia is a sub-tropical plant originally and it's beautifully scented at twilight because it's moth-pollinated in nature."
The natural sounds of bees buzzing or the wind in the trees are important when it comes to enjoying our gardens, but Hendy suggests that it can take a while to "tune in" to these sounds, as we're so used to blocking out the man-made noises that surround us in our everyday lives. If you live next to a busy road, you may never be able to escape these noises altogether, but Hendy says there is a lot that can be done with planting to encourage more relaxing sounds. "Pine trees are extraordinary," she says. "Even on a relatively still day it still sounds like the wind is really whistling around – that's one plant that definitely amplifies sound." She also highlights taller grasses and bamboos for their ability to create a gentle whispering sensation.
Much has been written about the relaxing nature of water in the garden, but Hendy says this is an area to exercise a little caution in. "You really have to know what you want before you set up a water feature and are then stuck with it," she says. "Because to have something on all the time in the background – sometimes actually what you want is a bit of peace and quiet. So I don't think a water feature, particularly in a small garden, wants to be too aggressive or echoey."
If it's been a while since you took off your shoes and walked barefoot through the garden, it's an exercise worth doing to start rediscovering texture. "When you see something beautiful like a rose, you can't help but touch it," says Hendy. "I find grasses wonderful, especially ones with very soft flowerheads - you can just delicately run your hands through them."
Many plants have interesting foliage, whether it's grooves on hosta leaves, frilly bunches of parsley, soft lamb's ears (Stachys byzantine) or feathery plumes of fennel. Hendy also mentions aspects of hard landscaping, from rough terracotta pots to smooth cobbles and silky driftwood, as ways of adding texture to the garden. "I also think you've got to have the spiky and the prickly to go with the smooth and the glossy to give you textural contrast," she says.
One group of plants that often deliver on looks, scent, touch, texture and taste, are herbs. "One of my all-time favourites has got to be lavender," says Hendy. "Visually it's a stunning plant and you only have to disturb it slightly and you get the gorgeous, rich lavender oil scent."
Many gardeners are now incorporating fruit and veg into their gardens and there's nothing like the freshness of homegrown vegetables – little cherry tomatoes still warm from the sun, or globe artichokes whisked from plant to pan of boiling water and out onto your plate within minutes, without any loss of flavour or of goodness.
Hendy says that you don't need a dedicated vegetable plot to bring edibles into your garden scheme – even a few pots will do. "If you're out at the office all day and you can come home and just pick enough lettuce or a few nice crispy radishes and pull a few carrots to do yourself a really fresh salad, then that is amazing."
You might think a small space rules out fruit growing, but not so. "I've got a big wooden barrel with a dwarf rooting stock James Grieve apple," says Hendy. "I only planted it last year and this year it's got masses of fruit."
In Creating a Garden of the Senses, she has plenty of tips on the visual side of gardens too, from combining colours to composing garden "pictures" that will look good from all angles. But it's her ideas designed to stimulate our other senses that really provide gardeners with food for thought. sm n For a host of exciting new plant products, visit
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