Sensory Garden Design, Sense of Touch

There are a number of ways to incorporate tactile features in a sensory garden, which is especially important for children or individuals with visual impairments.

Textured plants are a beautiful way to incorporate touch into your sensory garden and can ignite the senses in the simplest of ways. Here are a collection of our favourite textured plants for your sensory garden.

The Eryngium (Sea Holly) Big Blue is a happy and vibrant flowering plant that is admired for its striking appearance and interesting textures. It is often likened in appearance to the Scottish thistle although its foliage is much gentler to touch so it is often preferred. It has spiky and furry flowers which are mild enough for children to scrunch and touch.

Lamb’s Ear is a fashionable plant amongst gardeners for being a friendly and textured perennial. This plant covers the ground and has gentle, fluffy foliage; it flowers in the summer and despite its deceivingly mild appearance its flower is quite stunning. This plant is also popular as it’s easy to maintain, the furry film that coats the leaves protect and moisture the plant from the drier period of the year.

Sensory garden design | Touch

Outside of the plant world, there are a variety of other ways to incorporate texture into a sensory garden. Entwined willow and speckled concrete can be used as structural walls, and touchpads with different textures can be a lovely addition for gardens designed for inquisitive children!

sense of touch - kirkclady

Case Study: Hospice Garden, Kirkcaldy

This garden design needed to provide a tranquil and attractive space for enjoyment by all residents, visitors and staff, while allowing easy access and use for activities.

Curved resin-bound gravel paths flow through the garden, leading to a central drystone effect trough by the summerhouse to add texture and features alpine planting. Carefully chosen plants and ornamental grasses add texture, movement, height and winter interest.

Explore our full case study, Hospice Garden, Kirkcaldy.

Would you like help to design your own sensory garden?

If you would like to design and build more sensory elements into your garden – sight, sound, smell, taste or touch – get in touch and tell us what inspires you in your garden experiences. And remember, we cover Perthshire, Edinburgh, Dundee,, and St Andrews and Fife.

If you’re not sure about what services you need, don’t worry we’re here to help take you through the process!

Simply give us a call on 01738 553 014 if you would like to discuss our sensory garden design service.