While every garden offers a sensory experience to a certain extent, some are designed to enhance this. They stimulate all five senses in a big way; sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste, resulting in a garden that’s exciting yet serene – a space that will really boost your mental health.
Spend some time Googling various plants to add to a sensory garden and most of your results will be herb-based. It’s easy to see why – a single herb plant can often appeal to all five senses at once, making them a no-brainer in a sensory garden.
However, as with any garden, trees are important too. Pick the right ones and you’ll really be able to elevate the sensory experience that your garden offers. Not sure which trees to go for? Here are our top three choices.
Tahitian Lime Tree
We’ll be honest – there aren’t a huge number of trees out there capable of stimulating all five senses at the same time, which is why the Tahitian Lime Tree is at the top of our list. There’s no shortage of visual appeal when it comes to this tree, from its glossy evergreen foliage to its stunning blossoms. Even better, being an ever-bearing tree means that those flowers and fruits will be present year-round for your eyes, and mouth, to feast on.
What about scent? Again, that comes from the flowers. They’re beautifully fragrant, and the constant stream of pollinators that they attract will keep your ears busy!
Beaked Yucca Tree
Another tree that all of your senses will absolutely love, the Beaked Yucca, also known as the Yucca Rostrata, never fails to impress. This dramatic feature tree will give your garden a stunning new focal point, making it hardly surprising that this tree has been soaring in popularity.
Many yuccas are infamous for their rigid and sharp leaves – not ideal for a garden that encourages people to touch them! This is why the Beaked Yucca is such a great choice. Its leaves are much softer than other yucca varieties. Not only does this make them safer, but it also enables them to emit a beautiful rustling sound when a breeze passes through them.
The scented flowers that the Beaked Yucca produces are just the icing on the cake. Their fragrance is rich and deeply sweet, with this enhanced even further as the sun starts to set for the day.
Mango Tree
It’s always beneficial when a sensory garden contains several edible plants – after all, that’s the only way that your garden will be able to stimulate your tastebuds! This is where the mango tree comes in. Unlike many other fruit trees, the mango tree is extremely low-maintenance, making it ideal for people with busy schedules. You can even grow a mango tree in a pot if you don’t have enough space in the ground to plant one.
Mango trees are evergreen, meaning that they’re attractive year-round. However, they really come into their own each year once they start flowering and fruiting, with the flowers emitting an intoxicating exotic scent. The fruit produced by the tree gives it a texture that many people won’t be able to resist touching, and the flavour of a perfectly ripe, freshly picked mango will outshine just about everything else that your garden produces!
Summary
There’s nothing quite as enjoyable as a leisurely stroll through a sensory garden – they really do have the potential to stimulate people in a whole new way. Even better, you don’t need to redesign your garden from scratch if you’d like to make it more sensory. Instead, focus on adding in sensory plants wherever possible, starting with the three garden trees mentioned above, and you’ll be well on your way to creating a sensory paradise.