If you\u2019re looking for an environment that\u2019s soothing, skill-building, and stimulating all at once, look no further than sensory gardens. A sensory garden is a calming refuge for anyone, but its sensory stimulation is especially beneficial to people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). <\/p>
In this guide to creating a sensory garden for people with autism, we\u2019ll cover:<\/p>
What is a sensory garden?<\/a> Plants for sensory gardens<\/a> A regular garden may stimulate your senses, but a sensory garden<\/a> is a carefully designed, immersive space that makes sure to hit sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch. It also can strengthen the sixth and seventh senses: proprioception (your sense of your body in space) and the vestibular sense (your understanding of balance and movement). <\/p> Autism Spectrum Disorder<\/a> (ASD) manifests in many different ways \u2014 hence the \u201cspectrum\u201d part of the title \u2014 but is often characterized by sensory sensitivities and different ways of socializing and communicating. People with sensory processing disorders like ASD either fail to respond to sensory input or are quickly overwhelmed by even subtle stimuli. <\/p> As anyone familiar with ASD knows, not everyone with autism is alike. While our tips are appropriate for most, it\u2019s always good to keep in mind who will be enjoying your particular garden and if they tend to be under-responsive or over-responsive. <\/p> Under-responsive people can benefit from extra stimulation like bright colors, sprinklers to run through, and motion-sensory lights. Over-responsive people can benefit from predictable patterns, soothing textures, and plants arranged by similar size and height. <\/p> A butterfly garden<\/a> is a great opportunity to incorporate gentle wildlife. People can sit on a bench and watch the butterflies move from one flower to another, or more active autistic children may enjoy chasing them around the space. <\/p> Butterfly gardens cover several senses at once \u2014 plants that attract winged creatures tend to be showy, colorful, and sometimes fragrant. Native plants are also your best bet for welcoming butterflies and happen to be lower maintenance than non-native plants.<\/p> Plants to include in a butterfly garden:<\/strong><\/p> *Make sure you\u2019re choosing native<\/em> butterfly weed. Imported cultivars can actually harm monarch butterflies. <\/p> Harsh sunlight can be draining for people with sensory issues. The solution? Include shade structures that provide respite from the sun while still making sure plants get the light they need. <\/p> A canopy or patio with a solid roof is great for providing heavy shade over a seating area. Planting trees with wide spreads like aspens, oaks, and American sweetgum ensures dappled shade for a garden. You also can weave vines atop a pergola to create another area of partial shade. <\/p> Visual cues like physical boundaries and signage with pictures are easy ways for people with sensory processing disorders to orient themselves in the space. Visual boundaries signal a change in the environment, allowing visitors to prepare for a shift in sensory experiences.<\/p> Ideas for visual boundaries:<\/strong><\/p> Picture exchange communication system<\/a> (PECS) is a common technique for people with autism to communicate without talking. Signs with pictures at entry points to play areas or gardens are in the same spirit. <\/p> When designing your landscape, section it off into specific sensory \u201czones.\u201d These are areas that have a designated sense or activity. A butterfly garden, for example, could act as a zone. That way, visitors know what they\u2019re walking into and can focus on one sense or activity at a time instead of being overwhelmed by too many triggers. <\/p> Other zones might include:<\/p> Incorporate the visual cues in Step 3 to let visitors know what they\u2019re walking into and help them identify their favorite spaces.<\/p> Including a nature trail is a great way to foster a sense of adventure and build skills with small obstacles. A nature trail doesn\u2019t have to be anything special \u2014 it\u2019s simply a path that isn\u2019t well manicured. You can place a log somewhere to climb over and pebbles and rocks to gather. <\/p> Not only is a natural pathway good for play, navigating it helps strengthen balancing skills, motor skills, and proprioception (our sense of where we are in physical space), qualities that are sometimes weaker in people with sensory processing issues.<\/p> Areas with little stimulation are just as important as areas of extra sensory stimulation. These act as places of refuge for guests; a quiet space to retreat to when things get too intense is key to creating a healthy experience. <\/p> These spaces should be soothing to the eye and offer privacy. A bamboo tunnel is the perfect dark space where someone can be alone. A low-growing tree also offers the opportunity to be shrouded from stimuli. <\/p> Adding sensory stimulating elements is key, but you need places to enjoy them! Don\u2019t forget to add seating to areas where you want to spend time. A bench in a fragrant keyhole garden, for example, is the perfect way to notice the details of the scents. <\/p> You can get creative with seating. Smooth rocks are great tactile objects as well as seats. A swing or rocking chair can be especially calming and help strengthen the vestibular system (balance). <\/p> A music wall is a fantastic way to have fun with your sense of sound, creativity, and collaboration. It\u2019s a dedicated wall with instruments and sound makers attached, like wind chimes, maracas, drums, bells, and flutes. You also can include pots and pans, buckets, and ridged PVC pipes to run sticks along. <\/p> You can use a wooden slatted fence as the base for a DIY music wall. Incorporate different colors to stimulate sight as well, and make sure to have a dedicated basket for drumsticks, other equipment, and moveable parts. <\/p> Being responsible for growing something is extremely therapeutic and fosters new skills, confidence, responsibility, and casual socialization. Install a small raised garden bed for easy access for people with physical disabilities and fill it with easy-to-grow plants. Edible plants<\/a> offer a tasty reward, and many household herbs are simple to care for. <\/p> Edible plants to try:<\/strong><\/p> Tips for keeping your edible garden healthy:<\/strong><\/p> When creating your sensory garden<\/a> and choosing your plants, it\u2019s easiest to go through each sense to make sure you\u2019re covering everything. <\/p> Sight <\/strong><\/p> Smell<\/strong><\/p> Sound <\/strong><\/p> Taste<\/strong><\/p> Touch<\/strong><\/p> Sensory gardens have all kinds of benefits for people with ASD. As noted in reference to the Els Center of Excellence\u2019s sensory garden<\/a>, they \u201cprovide opportunity and choice for everyone to engage with nature on their own terms, in their own way, and at their own pace.\u201d<\/p> A few of the benefits of sensory gardens<\/a> include:<\/p> If you like the idea of a sensory garden but aren\u2019t sure how to get started on your own, hire a professional landscaping team<\/a>. They\u2019ll help bring your vision to life with hardscaping design and plant installation. If you need general lawn maintenance like weekly mowing and edging, a Lawn Love pro<\/a> can keep your yard green.<\/p> Main Photo Credit: Kat Kennedy<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you\u2019re looking for an environment that\u2019s soothing, skill-building, and stimulating all at once, look no further than sensory gardens. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":9725,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[298],"tags":[390],"class_list":["post-9726","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-landscaping","tag-landscaping-austin-tx"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/rsz_1image_from_ios_4.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Rachel Abrams","author_link":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/author\/rachel-abrams\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9726\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9725"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?<\/a>
Personalizing your garden design<\/a>
9 sensory garden ideas<\/a><\/p>
Benefits of a sensory garden for people with ASD<\/a><\/p> What is a sensory garden?<\/span><\/h2>
What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?<\/span><\/h2>
Personalizing your garden design<\/span><\/h2>
9 sensory garden ideas for people with autism<\/span><\/h2>
1. Butterfly garden<\/span><\/h3>
2. Shade structures<\/span><\/h3>
3. Visual cues<\/span><\/h3>
4. Sensory specific zones<\/span><\/h3>
5. Nature trail<\/span><\/h3>
6. Reduced sensory areas<\/span><\/h3>
7. Seating<\/span><\/h3>
8. Music wall<\/span><\/h3>
9. Low-maintenance edible garden<\/span><\/h3>
Plants for a sensory garden<\/span><\/h2>
Benefits of a sensory garden for people with ASD<\/span><\/h2>
Garden with a pro <\/h2>