GARDEN DESIGNS FOR POLLINATOR CONSERVATION
The PollinateHV Sunny Border, one of the eight garden designs available to access free below.
These garden designs use locally native plants from the PollinateHV Plant List to support the most vulnerable native pollinators in our region. They suit a range of site conditions common to the Hudson Valley and can be easily adapted to fit different spaces. Each design package includes a garden layout drawing, plant list, and seasonal bloom calendar. You can find a list of relationships between each plant and the native pollinators they support in our complete plant list.
Border gardens fit nicely next to a building or beside a path, while “patch” gardens can replace larger sections of lawn. For special conditions, the Pond Edge Planting can be repeated all along a pond edge to delight butterflies and birds; the Shady Woodland Patch is ideal under an existing shade tree; and the Rocky Hilltop Garden is perfect for spots with very poor, sandy soil or areas of exposed bedrock. Feel free to get creative - adapt the shape, plant a partial design in a small space, or repeat the design to cover a larger area.
Coming Soon to Town Near You! Many of these garden designs will be planted in Hudson Valley communities in June 2026 through generous funding from the New York Pollinator Conservation Fund. Keep an eye on our case studies page for documentation of each project, and join the Partners for Climate Action mailing list to receive invitations to help plant the gardens!
Tips for Using These Designs in Your Landscape
Personalizing the Designs: Each template can be used as a building block for larger plantings. Consider repeating a border design several times along the edge of a building, or planting several patches together to fill a yard. Shapes can be modified to suit your space, or you can increase or decrease the number of plants of each species to adjust the planting area. Most perennials are spaced 12” apart for easy layout.
Have an Established Garden? No need to start from scratch! Use the templates to get ideas for native plants that grow well together and thrive in similar garden conditions, or to expand the bloom season of your existing garden.
Sourcing Plants: Check out our recommendations for plant sourcing and native nursery list to get started. If you’re planting a brand-new garden, we recommend using plugs - young plants a few inches in size - which are cost-effective and quick to establish. You can even grow some of your own plants from PollinateHV local ecotype seed!
More Garden Designs
For further inspiration, check out the custom garden designs for each of our original case study sites, created by Landscape Interactions.
