Plenty of people would give anything to have a relaxed coastal garden packed with ornamental grasses and colorful flowering plants — because the most beautiful coastal gardens can make every day feel like a vacation. Coastal regions do force gardeners to confront and overcome unique challenges, however, and to create a garden that’s not only a joy to unwind in, but also a pleasure to take care of, it is essential to work with the natural landscape and climate conditions.
Having said that, not all “coastal gardens” are found in coastal regions — some people also aim to bring the sea or ocean a little closer by taking inspiration from classical coastal gardens, knowing that many of the plants that most famously grow along coast lines can thrive further inland, too.
What Do You Have to Keep in Mind When You’re Designing a Coastal Garden?
Coastal regions can be defined as transitional zones that bridge the gap between sea or ocean and land, encompassing both areas right along the coast and those slightly further inland that are still distinctly shaped by the sea or ocean.
Gardeners hoping to create their own green oasis, popping with bright flowers, in a coastal region have to keep all the little ways in which the coast influences their climate and soil conditions in mind, because not all types of plants thrive in coastal regions, and not all design ideas that would work in other gardens can succeed in coastal areas.
Some things you should always keep in mind if you’re gathering inspiration for coastal garden design include:
- Because the land cools off at a much faster rate than the nearby ocean, coastal regions experience (occasionally quite potent) evening breezes, while the wind is going to be strongest right along the shore during the daytime. Aim to create windbreaking features in your garden, and choose hardy plants that are naturally wind-resistant. Wind also limits your garden design ideas a bit. Flimsy trellises and privacy screens may snap or simply be blown away.
- A milder coastal climate. Make full use of the fact that coastal climates are milder, and generally don’t see any heavy frost, by adding colorful exotic plants that could never grow in colder areas!
- Sandy, loamy, or rocky and fast-draining soil types also force gardeners to make smart choices about the plants they include in their coastal gardens. Container gardening can broaden your options, however, so you could still add plants that require rich soil to your coastal garden!
- Salty coastal air, which will affect the soil in your garden as well as potentially spraying directly onto your plants, is another factor to consider — choose plants that tolerate salty soil and the foliage of which won’t be damaged by salt.
- Rain and fog are two more factors you won’t want to lose sight of. Coastal regions tend to get significantly more rainfall than areas further inland, which may create low-lying moist spots in your garden — influencing the plants you can grow there. Coastal fog means you will have to choose plants that tolerate higher humidity levels.
- Coastal gardens are also likely to be sloping, posing some unique design challenges, and soil erosion is another serious issue — especially for coastal gardens right along the shore. Ground cover plants are a must-have in these gardens.
Plant-wise, where in doubt, it makes a lot of sense to opt for trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowering plants that are native to your coastal region or other coastal areas with similar climate conditions. These plants have evolved to withstand the harsher coastal conditions around the sea or ocean, and have the highest odds of doing well in your seaside garden, too.
Tips to Help You Design the Perfect Coastal or Seaside Garden
While you’ll likely want to create that beach-like, sandy, and relaxing vibe in your coastal garden, you’ll also have your own unique preferences and sense of aesthetics. The final look of your coastal garden is entirely up to you, but as you plan your garden layout, you’ll want to keep a few things in mind.
Border hedges that serve as a boundary and offer protection from the coastal winds are essential for seaside gardens. If you’re right along the shore, you will want to opt for hardy evergreen shrubs that tolerate biting winds and salt spray. For gardens located slightly further inland, salt spray won’t pose a challenge. Hardy bushes are warmly recommended, however, because that beach breeze will still come your way.
With this kind of natural barrier in place, you’ll be free to plant the flowering plants that will brighten your garden up, as they’ll be protected from strong winds.
If you are planning to have a lawn installed, and to maintain it well, the sandy or rocky coastal soil will stand in your way. You’ll need to have topsoil installed first, to the tune of at least six inches (15 centimeters), and will need to opt for a grass type that can cope with your coastal climate. Allow your grass to grow taller than you might otherwise do.
Gravely, sandy, or rocky walkways are popular for coastal gardens. You can consider a pebble mosaic walkway or an aged wood walkway to lean into that beach-like, aquatic, atmosphere further, or opt for modern natural stone slabs that create a high-end feel. If your coastal garden is a sloping one, curved shapes are recommended — and they’ll further add a free-flowing, wavy feel that is perfect for the seaside.
Wooden privacy screens and trellises may be too weak to withstand the strong winds in your region, but driftwood fences or roped fences can look absolutely stunning and amplify the nautical vibes.
Finally, if you’re hoping to incorporate plants that wouldn’t thrive in coastal soil types in your seaside garden, these can be grown in containers and large planters. With the right amount of love, care, and advance planning, you’ll create the garden you’ve always wanted before you know it!
Top 12 Plants to Include in a Coastal Garden (and Why)
You and your garden will both benefit if you choose plants that naturally thrive in coastal regions — which means plants that are resistant to wind and salt, love sandy, loamy, or rocky soil, and can cope well with precipitation but also fast-draining soil. Anyone looking to create the perfect coastal garden should emphasize plants that act as ground cover and help with erosion control. Taller and hardy shrubs act as horticultural bodyguards that allow you to plant colorful flowering species deeper into your garden — and vibrant wildflowers are especially popular in coastal gardens.
Here’s a look at some of the best plants to add to your coastal garden, both because they’ll grow well in a coastal climate (often without being very labor-intensive to care for) and because they look amazing.
Hosta
Hostas (Hosta spp.) are an entire genus of herbaceous perennials that are beloved for their extremely large foliage — these clumping and spreading plants have huge fleshy deciduous leaves with a decidedly aquatic feel. Also called plantain lilies — because hostas are part of the lily family — these stunning perennials are native to eastern Asia but do well in a wide range of climate and temperature conditions, pretty much all over the world.
Hostas are treasured for their ability to flourish in deep shade, where most plants will struggle and even die. As a nice bonus, hostas are easy to take care of and to propagate. They are usually around six to 48 inches tall and 10 and six inches wide, though some variants are even larger. If your coastal garden has well-draining rich and fertile soil with a slightly acidic pH level, hostas are the perfect choice for your garden.
The hosta genus contains over 2000 different species and varieties, so deciding which one deserves a spot in your coastal garden might be tough! The more well-known hosta species include:
- Hosta ‘Patriot’ grows to be about 18 inches tall and two feet wide with amazing variegated leaves.
- Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ is a small variant with a mature size of six to 12 inches. Is marvelous blue-green heart-shaped leaves make this hosta a favorite.
- Hosta ‘Sum and Substance’ is much bigger than most hosta species, growing to be 36 inches tall with a spread of five feet. It has large leaves with an alluring golden color.
Hostas can survive somewhat salty conditions though its best to place these plants slightly farther inland.
Woodbine
Woodbine (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is a truly extraordinary deciduous woody creeping vine that’s (in)famous for its rapid growth and ability to thrive just about anywhere. Coastal regions are no exception. Just be very sure that you want woodbine — also known as the Virginia creeper — in your coastal garden before introducing it, because once present, this plant is there to stay.
Some gardeners really enjoy this climbing and creeping vine, which is native to North America and Mexico, as it’s easy to train onto trellises or up vertical spaces, where they’ll often grow to be 30 to 50 feet tall and five to 10 feet wide. In your coastal garden, where you need ground cover plants, woodbine can help with erosion control. The best part? You have plenty of cultivars to choose from, and whether you’re after a vine with deep green, crimson, or variegated foliage, woodbine’s just what you’re after if you need a low-maintenance vine.
Woodbine grows in moist or dry soil and isn’t choosy about its pH levels. Picking a spot for your woodbine with either full sunlight, partial shade, or dappled sunlight will keep it strong and healthy. The Virginia creeper is also resistant to many different challenges — salt, erosion, heat, deer, pollution, drought, and heavy shade.
A word of warning though — the beautiful dark berries these plants produce during the fall and summer are sure to make your landscape more interesting, but don’t eat them. They’re poisonous to humans and pets alike.
Sea Thrift
Plants native to coastal regions generally do best in coastal gardens, and this flowering perennial’s common and scientific names both point you in the right direction already — sea thrift and Armeria ‘maritima’ both suggest a hardy coastal plant!
Native to the Mediterranean, sea thrift tolerates moderate salt spray and has grassy foliage that will sway beautifully in the breeze. Its amazing pink or white flowers, which make their appearance during the spring and last into the summer, have a unique balloon shape that makes them very appealing to gardeners.
Sea thrift naturally grows in loamy, sandy, or rocky soil with excellent drainage, which means it quite literally evolved to have a place in your coastal garden. These flowering plants can grow in full sun to partial shade, as well as the dappled sun that you get if you’re growing this plant near a larger tree.
These plants do need to be deadheaded regularly to keep them blooming vibrantly, but they’re otherwise easy to care for as they tolerate salty soil and drought. If you’re hoping to attract pollinators to your coastal garden, sea thrift will give you a head start!
Red Hot Poker
Red hot poker plants — which get that common name from their yellow-red flower spikes, which bloom during the summer — are scientifically known as Kniphofia. These absolutely gorgeous bulbous perennials are native to Madagascar and East and South Africa, and of the approximately 60 wonderful species you could add to your garden today, the majority are hybrids. Although red hot poker plants are native to especially warm regions, they can be grown farther north in coastal zones. Why not take advantage, and add this gorgeous plant to your collection?
Red hot poker plants are resistant to salt, thrive in full sun to partial shade, and need well-draining coastal soil but have very modest watering needs. Depending on the species or cultivar, red hot poker plants may grow to be anywhere from one to four feet tall, and they make for absolutely wonderful accent plants.
Rockrose
Rockroses (Cistus) are evergreen flowering shrubs that are excellent for coastal gardens because they are native to the coastal areas of the Mediterranean. Their appearance is truly gorgeous — by inviting these plants into your garden, you gain dense green shrubs with stunning papery flowers. Their leaves are aromatic, and rockrose shrubs can survive drought and hot temperatures.
When mature, rockrose plants are usually three to five feet tall. They appreciate places with full sunlight and well-draining rocky soil with a soil pH of 5.6 to 7.5. The flowers of the rockrose plant bloom in the summer and grow in shades of of pink, rose, white, and yellow. Flowering ornamental shrubs are important to any garden, including coastal gardens, and rockrose is an obvious pick.
Hawthorn
Hawthorn species, including Crataegus aestivalis and Crataegus monogyna, are an extremely popular choice for living security and privacy hedges, thanks to their dense foliage and sharp thorns, as well as giving rise to delicate and pleasant pink or white flowers during the spring. In coastal gardens, hawthorn shrubs are among the better choices for barrier shrubs that can help to combat soil erosion and protect other plants in your garden from heavy winds.
Crataegus aestivalis, to name one example, loves loamy, clay, or sandy soil, thrives in moist conditions with full sun to partial shade, and attracts plenty of pollinators. You’ll have endless species and cultivars to pick from, and some grow rather tall (up to 40 feet or so), while others are modestly-sized shrubs.
English Lavender
Lavender plants (Lavandula angustifolia) are well-known for their incredibly fragrant and edible flowers. Also called English lavender or common lavender, they are evergreen perennial shrubs in the mint family that are native to countries in the Mediterranean. English lavender is a dwarf shrubs that will only grow one to two feet tall with a spread of two to three feet.
Plant your English lavender in a spot with full sunlight or partial shade and well-draining sandy or shallow rocky soil. Your lavender shrub will grow best in alkaline and neutral pH levels. The flowers of the common lavender bloom in summer and attract pollinates and butterflies! They are resistant to drought and dry soil. Do keep your pets away from lavender plants, though, as they are toxic to your furry friends.
The English lavender is guaranteed to add both beauty and fragrance to your coastal garden, and to top it all off, it’s supremely easy to take care of!
Sea Lavender
Sea lavender — or Limonium — might at first glance sound very similar to our last pick, but the two belong to entirely different genera. Limonium is a genus of over 120 flowering plants, most of which are native to diverse coastal regions and tolerate salt very well. They’re rosette-forming perennials with showy blue, yellow, pink, purple, red, or white flowers that appear during the summer.
Sea lavender species thrive in sandy coastal soil, prefer full to partial sun, and can adapt to such a wide variety of conditions that people looking to create the look of a coastal garden without being anywhere near the sea or ocean will also want to add this plant to their list.
Blue Fescue
Blue fescue grass (Festuca glauca) is a striking mounding ornamental grass treasured for its amazing blue-green foliage. The yellow, blue, green, or purple flowers of the grass bloom during the spring and summer, and add a nice touch. This grass is usually added to a rock garden or drought-tolerant garden, and it needs well-draining soil to succeed. Although it is not salt-resistant, blue fescue grass is a popular choice in coastal gardens, as it can tolerate extremely windy conditions and needs mild winters to survive.
- : How to Grow & Care for “Festuca Glauca”
Smoke Tree
The smoke tree or smoke bush (Cotinus coggygria) is a deciduous woody plant that can be grown as a shrub or small tree, where it can help with erosion control in your coastal garden. Their bold appearance is the main appeal of the smoke tree, which has pink flowers that look like smoke and are often described as wispy or airy. Smoke trees can grow to be 10 to 15 feet tall when mature.
Smoke trees, which are native to Southern Europe and central China, thrive in full sunlight and will definitely thank you if you give them well-draining loamy soil with an acidic or alkaline pH level. They have yellow, gold, or pink flowers in the spring and summer, which act as butterfly magnets.
Jupiter’s Beard
Valeriana rubra, commponly called Jupiter’s beard or red Valerian, is a beautiful European wildflower with charming yellow, purple, pink, red, or white flowers that form in clusters. Another coastal native, this species needs sandy and well-draining soil and full sun to partial shade. Often grown on rock walls and and sloping gardens, Jupiter’s beard is sometimes considered invasive — making it perfect if you’re looking for an extremely low-maintenance addition to a coastal garden with a cottage-like feel to it.
These plants attract butterflies and other pollinators, and the leaves are edible. Because it’s not salt-resistant, it’s best to plant Jupiter’s beard a little further inland.
Beach Morning-Glory
Ipomoea imperati, more commonly called beach morning-glory, is a tropical and subtropical flowering vine. It’s a great addition to your coastal garden if you need more ground cover plants, as it’s found along dunes and beaches in the wild. Yes, that makes beach morning-glory wonderfully salt-resistant. In addition, these vines brighten up your coastal garden during the fall, as their yellow and white flowers rear their heads in August and remain until October.
In Conclusion
Designing a coastal garden is unquestionably a unique challenge. The golden rule to turn your garden into a success story? Stick mainly to native plants that naturally thrive on the coast, and make sure you have a shrubby wind barrier in place. As long as you keep that in mind, you can add decorate and design your coastal garden any way you’d like, and enjoy thriving greenery every time you set foot outside!
