Garden Design Step Six: Placing the Big Elements

Now that you have your base drawing and tracing paper ready, it’s time to start shaping the garden in a meaningful way by placing the largest, most permanent elements first.

This step is about structure, not specifics.

Start With New Paths & Hardscaping

Begin by sketching in any new paths or hardscaping you want to add:

• Walkways
• Sitting areas
• Walls
• Steps
• Benches
• Ponds or water features

These elements define how the garden is experienced and how people move through it. Keep them simple and intentional. You can refine materials and details later since right now you’re just deciding where they belong.

A best practice if you have the time is to walk through the area for a year and get to understand how you move through it. Then create paths based on easy of access. Alternatively, you may want to intentionally slow someone down as they walk through your garden. If so, they you can have the path meander and double back. Just make sure that matches the needs of a garden. 

A deep dive on paths

Let me wax poetic on paths for a moment since they are so critical!

Here is an example from my visit to the Kansas City Botanical Gardens. They had this path almost double back on each other so you can see both sides of this beautiful bed. Additionally the paving was in a shape that pointed downhill which helped the eye travel down.

Next I actually built this path in 2 steps. First it was just a long curve down to the garage. But, then after walking off the path for a year to get to the fenced garden, I had that extension added. It is so much more functional that way.

Here you can see I intentionally made paths at a right angle to match the style of the greenhouse even though the shortest path is through the grass.

Here is another example at the KC Botanical Gardens that was simply made to loop around this pond. Notice the flagstones match the rustic nature of the pond.

Here in my garden we added the stepping stones in a way that hugged the bed because we knew it was the most direct route and that otherwise we would never use them.

Here is a path locally that was put in at Central Mass Garden Center. I love it because it takes you right to the water feature and the stones are amble and form an almost solid path.

Here is a teeny tiny path down these stairs which makes you slow down and notice the beautiful ajuga, hosta, lambs ear and liriope lining the path.

Last, here is a local garden in Massachusetts where the steps take me through the stream! How cool is that!

Add Trees and Large Shrubs (Generically)

Next, start placing trees and large shrubs but don’t choose exact varieties yet unless your heart is set on something.

Instead, think in terms of size and space.

If you imagine a tree that will eventually be about 15 feet wide, draw:

• A 15-foot-wide circle to represent the mature canopy
• A small mark inside the circle to show where the trunk will be

This helps you visualize:

• How much space the tree truly needs
• How it will interact with buildings, paths, and other plantings
• Whether it will block views, frame something, or create shade

Do the same for large shrubs and make sure draw their mature size, not their size at planting.

This one step prevents one of the most common garden mistakes: overcrowding.

Think About Relationships, Not Plants

As you place these elements, focus on how they relate to each other:

• Do trees anchor corners or frame views?
• Do shrubs soften structures or define edges?
• Is there enough space for everything to grow comfortably?

This is also a good moment to revisit symmetry or balance, depending on the style you decided on earlier.

Keep It Loose

Nothing here is final.

That’s the beauty of working on tracing paper since you can lift it, shift things, and try again. Make multiple versions. Explore options. See what feels right.

Once the big pieces are placed well, the rest of the garden becomes much easier to design.

What Comes Next

With hardscaping and large plants mapped out, the structure of your garden is officially taking shape.

In the next post, we’ll start layering in medium shrubs, grasses, and perennials thus filling in around these anchors and beginning to shape the garden’s rhythm and flow.

This is also exactly the process we’ll work through together in my Garden Design Workshop on March 1 at Scout Hill Farm, where I’ll help you translate ideas on paper into a clear, plantable plan.