A Magical World: Experiments in Design at Sakonnet Garden

An insider’s look at how the authors designed Sakonnet Garden, a magical and immersive two-acre oasis that’s become a cult favorite for plant and garden enthusiasts.

A fantastical wonderland in Little Compton, Rhode Island, Sakonnet Garden was crafted bit by bit out of a thicket on the owners’ small piece of land. What’s emerged is an innovative design of garden rooms and creative plantings that enrich the boundaries of what a small sustainable garden can be. 

In a blend of garden writing and plant vignettes, the text illuminates the garden as a living, breathing creation, continually evolving. The authors’ keen observations on plant growing and collecting take us into the seasonal rhythms of maintenance and their ongoing experiments in design.

A key tenet of the garden is to be a home for pollinators year-round. The imaginative design of year-round outdoor spaces, combined with the mixed native and exotic plantings, increases biodiversity in every season. 

Sakonnet Garden plays with space and scale, creating a sensory experience for the visitor and providing revelatory proof of the types of plantings that can thrive on the New England coast. The book offers a trove of the authors’ knowledge and experience, combined with transporting imagery, to inspire everyone who loves plants, gardening, and design.