Salt-Tolerant Coastal Garden

Salt-tolerant perennials with a long bloom-time are a welcome addition to any coastal landscape, and are a must for a year-round healthy garden. Offshoots, Inc, designed this beachside residence in South Dartmouth to utilize salt-tolerant plants with a focus on native species, to blend the residential garden into the preexisting coastal grasses. This particular coastal landscape is populated with pollinator species chosen for summer blooms. The gardens are designed in colored themes of purple and pink. Special care was taken in the planting arrangement to create the effect where the new planned landscape smoothly transitions into the original native landscape, providing visual continuity.

Visual surprises are tucked into the design of the landscape. Butterfly weeds (Aesclepias spp.), Vervain (Verbena bonariensis), Hydrangea and Rose Mallow Hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos) burst with color, representing the edge of the coastal plants and the planned garden, while a field of American Beach Grass edge edges the sandy trail to the waterside. This creates a wash of color emphasized against a backdrop of yellow and green grasses. The landscape deemphasizes strong lines, mimicking the blurred edges of the dunes and the grasslands. A small shaded path connects the front yard with the backyard seating area, where one can spot a woven willow fence wrapping around a small vegetable gardening space. Notice that the building materials for the small fence are biodegradable, which means they won’t be detrimental to the sensitive local environment in case of flooding.