In sensory gardens and spaces, ornamental grasses play the role of gentle conductors, orchestrating a symphony of sensations. Their feathery foliage invites touch, whispering secrets of softness and strength to the fingertips. As they sway in the breeze, they offer a visual dance, captivating the eye with their graceful movements and changing textures.

Looking for a place to start? Check out this blog post to see the grasses we recommend that are known for their visual appeal, tactile qualities, and soothing rustling sounds.

Let's talk about grasses, sedges, and rushes for our winged allies. These unassuming plants provide shelter, food sources, and nesting material for a diverse array of birds. The preservation of these habitats becomes even more crucial in an era characterized by habitat loss and environmental degradation. By conserving these vital ecosystems, we not only protect the habitats of countless bird species but the delicate balance of nature itself. Learn more in this post

Trying xeriscaping ideas may be for you if you want a backyard that doesn't require much know-how or muscle-power to maintain.

Xeriscaping is all about not needing water irrigation, which means getting creative with your outdoor space. We've asked designers and landscaping experts what you can do, from creating picturesque meadow gardens to zen-like rock gardens.

Looking for ideas that are easy to maintain and look great? This article features designers who have landscaped backyards and how to bring this technique in.

From a bird's eye view (pun intended), the world has gone to rot. The urban sprawls, the agricultural operations, and the deforested lands have deprived them of their prized habitats and their lives — an argument supported by Cornell Lab's 2019 findings of over 2.9 million birds vanishing in the past half-century. But these sweeping declines can be reversed if you choose to embrace "birdscaping," an approach where you thoughtfully design your landscape around the needs of the feathered species.

Find out what to grow to attract birds and how to provide cover for birds.

English cottage gardens have grown in popularity as people look for sustainable alternatives to perfectly manicured lawns and gardens. This garden style blends formal English garden ideas, such as hedges planted in straight lines and crisp evergreen accents, with a cottage garden filled with a lush, unkempt mix of perennials, annuals, roses, and billowy ornamental grasses.

These English garden ideas will infuse your yard with vibrant hues and timeless cottage charm.

When we want to add color to the garden, most of us set our sights on flowers. But many leaf-forward plants can outlast and even outcompete those with colorful blossoms.

For starters, foliage plants don’t wax and wane or have a limited bloom time. In addition, many can brighten up shady spots that don’t offer enough sunlight for flowers. And they tend to be lower maintenance since they don’t need pruning or deadheading to keep blooming or look their best.

Foliage plants can add depth, texture and contrast to beds and containers, serving as focal points or backdrops for other plants. This article showcases species, varieties, and cultivars with beautiful color.

Beautiful green roofs have popped up all over the world: specially selected plants growing on structures designed to manage the extra weight of biomass. Amsterdam has taken that one step further with blue-green roofs, specially designed to capture rainwater. One project, the resilience network of smart, innovative, climate-adaptive rooftops (Resilio), has covered more than 9,000 sq metres (100,000 sq ft) of Amsterdam’s roofs, including 8,000 sq metres on social housing complexes. Citywide, the blue-green roof coverage is even bigger, estimated at more than 45,000 sq metres.

Strolling through Toronto in the summer, it’s common to see emerald and olive-green foliage and wisps of prairie grasses peeking out from the tops of condo towers and university buildings. But back in 1997, when Steven Peck, founder and president of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, first encountered the idea of a green roof at a conference, it was a revelation. After hearing about them from Dr. Brad Bass of Environment and Climate Change Canada, Peck would go on to make green roofs his life’s work. And increasingly, industry, government, and city residents are sharing his enthusiasm for the subject.

Explore how green roofs are transforming urban landscapes beyond aesthetics.

“When it rains, it pours” once was a metaphor for bad things happening in clusters. Now it’s becoming a statement of fact about rainfall in a changing climate.

Across the continental U.S., intense single-day precipitation events are growing more frequent, fueled by warming air that can hold increasing levels of moisture. Most recently, areas north of Houston received 12 to 20 inches (30 to 50 centimeters) of rain in several days in early May 2024, leading to swamped roads and evacuations. Events like these have sparked interest in so-called sponge cities – a comprehensive approach to urban flood mitigation that uses innovative landscape and drainage designs to reduce and slow down runoff, while allowing certain parts of the city to flood safely during extreme weather. 

Intense rainfall has increased in the Philadelphia region, and with climate change, scientists predict it will worsen over time. Rain forecasts not only threaten the region with flooding. Storms put waterways at risk of increased pollution that washes off streets and buildings, as well as sewage overflows.

Rain gardens could be part of the solution, according to recent Villanova University findings. After more than 20 years of monitoring, researchers say the university’s rain garden has effectively soaked up stormwater and prevented pollution from entering waterways.

Investing in resilient buildings, infrastructure, and community amenities to address the many impacts of climate change—including sea level rise, heat waves, storm surge, and drought—is crucial in safeguarding the built environment and in promoting the health and economic vitality of our cities.

Recent ULI technical assistance and Advisory Services panels have increasingly included a significant focus on the need for resilience; identifying strategies to reduce environmental vulnerabilities in communities across the United States.

In this article, they share updates on implementing recommendations to make their communities more resilient.

Horticultural science professor Danesha Seth Carley helped reintroduce native plants to the Pinehurst No. 2 golf course for its 2014 men's and women's U.S. Open championships. Since then, she's focused on bringing bees back to Donald Ross's original design for the course.

"The first time I met Neil Diboll, he set his front yard on fire. On purpose," says Margaret Roach, the creator of the website and podcast "A Way to Garden".

It was part of a lesson that Mr. Diboll, a prairie ecologist and nurseryman, was eager to share about native plant communities. The prairie species that had replaced his lawn were adapted to fire, he informed me, because regular wildfires had influenced their evolution.

That was more than 30 years ago. Since then, Mr. Diboll has continued to find dramatic ways to capture gardeners’ attention and educate them. That’s essential, he knows, when you’re dealing with ideas that are unfamiliar to most people.