A garden for the senses

The plants are an important aspect of this garden, obviously, but they are just one of the features that make it up. Included in the sensory garden will be; noises, smells, birds, colours, and more ideas are blooming as the concept grows. This project, which is being developed at the Firrhill centre, is for the benefit of people with complex disabilities, both cognitive and physical, with the idea that they enjoy and experience different sensations. The senses are therefore at the core of this garden.

“Life experiences for people with multiple disabilities can be quite limited and this is a way of opening up a whole range of pleasurable experiences to them”, Bill Haddow, Firrhill centre manager, explains.

The centre used to have a garden, but it was destroyed when the respite building was built. However, they now feel it is important to start again, and they are convinced the new garden will be a great boon to Firrhill. They are working on an interactive garden. “When you work with people with profound disabilities I think there´s a recognition that any sensory activity is a good thing. The concept of the garden is not only the garden, it´s also other activities for stimulation”, Bill continues.

Catherine Delire, who has a diploma from The Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, was asked to design the sensory garden. She explains that the design is approached in the same way as any other garden, but this one has quite specific and complex requirements for access and safety. “You have to have wide paths, minimum 1.50 meters wide. They have to be absolutely safe according to the legislation. After that we can think of more fun things”.

The second step of the project is to decide on the details. What plants are best for a physical experience? How can the journey through the garden be more interesting? What sort of activities can the users do with their own hands? What colours have the best visual impact or what noises are better and how can you create them? Bells in the trees, for example, or little frogs that can indicate the entrance of the garden?

The designer explains that stimulating taste is one of the most difficult ideas to develop. It has to be a very defined area (not all the plants can be eaten) and accessible.

Although Catherine has completed the design and a lot of the elements have been defined, she explains that the development of the garden is a progressive process and the design takes into consideration the available budget and the style of surrounding buildings together with user needs.

“This is my first sensory garden. This is more fun than a normal garden, because you can really let your creative mind go further. I have to be quite focused on all the materials and possible technical problems, but once all that has been solved I can let creativity go further/wild”.

It also depends on the budget and, even, the weather. The garden is expected to go ahead in October, however where plants are concerned, it is always better to plant in early spring, not in the middle of the winter. Bill and Catherine smile, then Bill says that the plan is to have made significant progress by next summer.

Firrhill offers a wide range of services including a day service, where people go and spend a day there, as well as residential short breaks, for slightly longer stays. The garden would add another feature to Firrhill which would be fun for everyone. “What we really want to do is make it that when they come here it’s the best part of their life… it’s like a holiday”.

The garden, Catherine concludes, is also designed for staff and visiting guests to help them relax. It is created for adults but has the potential to bring out the inner child.

A garden for the senses

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