“Uncontrollable changes in a garden are inevitable and wonderful opportunities,” says Donald Pell, a landscape designer in Chester County, Pennsylvania. To prove this is true, Donald and his associates created an incredible series of naturalistic gardens around their studio. This has become an invaluable laboratory where Donald and his team learn from failures and from the many years of watching the landscape design evolve. “Establishing a garden based on an initial plan—perhaps one even scribbled on paper—is a great place to start, but as plants, the setting, conditions, our knowledge, and our tastes change, so should our designs,” he says.

In this tour you’ll see the outcome of that design methodology. Donald discusses the challenges he faced when transforming this area of fallow farmland back into a vibrant expanse. Soil compaction and invasive plants were just a few of the issues that needed to addressed.

A few takeaways from his approach:

• Try to compose with plants of equally competitive natures
• Attempt to work with the site challenges, not against them
• Embrace changes in the garden, reassess needs, and pivot

During his three decades of experience, Donald has developed pain-saving design strategies and helpful pivots to get the greatest visual impact from a landscape over a long stretch of time. “I hope you’ll be able to learn from my mistakes to achieve the garden of your dreams,” he says.

In this video, Donald walks us through this amazing space, bursting with color and texture.

See more of this garden here

More on naturalistic garden style:

Thomas Rainer and Piet Oudolf on Naturalistic Gardens

Design an Engaging Naturalistic Garden in the Shade

Tour a Naturalistic Garden with Great Structure