Make Beauty Last With Sustainable Gardening

Make your garden stand out from others with sustainable gardening. "Green" isn't just about taking good care of the earth; it's a gorgeous aesthetic in its own right. Here, we show you how to use principles of sustainability in your garden.

Excerpted from Garden Design

+ Enlarge Photo

– Shrink Photo

Wildlife Haven

Planting is key for sustainable gardening. Choose plants that thrive in local conditions and complement each other; doing so will help reduce the likelihood of pests and diseases.

This sustainable garden supports and protects its precious resources, such as water and wildlife, by hosting a range of habitats, including a pile of decaying logs and tree stumps to provide homes for rare beetles, small mammals and frogs and toads. The cabin is made of sustainably-sourced cedar and features a "living" green roof covered in stonecrops. The gravel path that weaves through the garden allows visitors to enjoy its features at close view without interrupting them. It ties the home and landscape together perfectly while also directing rain runoff into nearby plantings, which reduces dependence on municipal water.