Backyard Garden Planning Made Simple

It might strike you as strange to start thinking about next year’s garden in the early days of September, but that’s exactly what a lot of avid gardeners do each fall. Planning starts now because by late summer, most gardeners know exactly what’s working in their plots and beds. This is the perfect time to take stock and observe the garden throughout the day, measure the beds, and even take soil samples for testing.

All of these tasks can be done in the fall so that during our winter hibernation we can use online digital design tools to plan and sketch and tinker. The best part is playing around with the garden design, adding paths and steps and landings and walkways, raised beds, lighting, water features, and whatever fanciful elements you can come up with.

Sketching up a quick idea with pencil and paper would work just as well, but proportions can be incorrect and spaces not accurately represented. If you want your contractor/landscaper to fully understand what you want your space to look like, then a model created using landscape design software is your safest bet. Most programs will allow you to print your designs, while some also have sharing capabilities so you can forward designs to contractors via email, or share them on a community platform.

Below are a couple of websites that might come in handy:

Gardena has a free, easy-to-use web-based app called My Garden. It’s a functional landscape designing tool that’s practical and accessible enough for non-technical types to use. To start off, draw the size and shape of the area you want to design, such as your backyard, or choose a pre-designed template to work with. It has an intuitive interface that is user friendly and requires no training or practise. This program is ideal for anyone looking to get a rough idea of what they could do with their landscape and what the finished design will look like.

Another great free tool is Plan-a-Garden from Better Homes and Gardens. To begin, you choose a background from a selection of stock images that most closely resembles your garden space. You then select from a number of surface coverings, and add plants and objects into the space using a drag and drop method. It also features care information for plants, which will help you keep your garden in excellent condition once planted. Another great feature of this app is that you can adjust the climate settings, and the app will only suggest plants for your planting zone.

So, get inspired and get acquainted with some free landscape design software. It might be the best thing you do for your garden this year. Happy garden planning!