Rewilding Your Backyard: Simple Ways to Let Nature Back In

 

 

A year of limited gardening taught me the beauty of rewilding. See how naturalized perennials created a full season of blooms with less work and more joy

For years I planted perennials with the hope that, over time, they would naturalize and return in greater numbers. I didn’t fully understand the long‑term benefits of that work  I only knew I loved planting, dividing, and tending them. Last year, when I became a full‑time caregiver to my husband, I finally learned what all those years of planting had given me.

With limited time for gardening, I couldn’t rely on my usual routine of adding annuals to fill the gaps between perennial blooms. Normally, those annuals carried my garden’s color well into fall. But last year, I simply didn’t have the time or energy. Instead, I let nature take the lead. I allowed the perennials, flowering shrubs, and naturalized plantings to bloom in their own rhythm.

What surprised me was how complete and beautiful the garden became on its own.

A Season of Natural Bloom Cycles

The garden unfolded like a slow, steady symphony:

• Late winter: snowdrops
• Early spring: purple crocus, early daffodils
• Mid-spring: hyacinths, tulips, more daffodils
• Late spring: forsythia, dogwood, lilacs, and finally the irises, peonies
• Early summer: lilies both stargazers and daylilies
• Mid-summer: bee balm, coneflowers, black‑eyed Susans, Shasta daisies, hydrangeas
• Late July: the fragrant evening bloom of my 4 o’clocks
• Late summer: hundreds of naked ladies and sweet autumn clematis
• Fall: chrysanthemums carrying the season to its close

A few photographs of my perennial flowers & gardens

With so many naturalized perennials returning in waves, I didn’t need  or even miss  the annuals. The garden was full, colorful, and alive from February through fall.

The Gift of Letting Nature Back In

Rewilding doesn’t have to mean letting your yard grow wild and untended. Sometimes it simply means trusting the plants you’ve nurtured over the years to take care of themselves and you.

My work last year was minimal: deadheading spent blooms, fertilizing, watering, and spot‑weeding the mulched beds. The garden did the rest. It reminded me that a well‑planned perennial garden is a living system, capable of thriving even when life pulls you away.

Letting nature back into my garden didn’t let me down. It carried me through a difficult year with beauty, color, and the comfort of knowing that the work I had done over decades was still giving back.

How to Create a Backyard Cat Sanctuary

Creating a backyard cat sanctuary is one of the most meaningful ways to support the cats in your life whether they’re beloved house cats, curious neighborhood visitors, or feral cats who’ve come to trust your space. A well‑designed sanctuary offers safety, enrichment, and comfort. Over time, it becomes a peaceful retreat where cats return daily to relax, explore, and feel at home.

In my own yard, the cat garden has become exactly that. The cats who visit are drawn to the soft mulch, the grasses, the herbs, and the quiet corners where they can nap or watch the world go by. A thoughtfully designed sanctuary doesn’t rely on photos the plants, textures, and layout speak for themselves.

 

Why Create a Cat Garden?

A cat garden provides:

• A safe space away from traffic and noise
• Natural enrichment through grasses, herbs, and textures
• Shelter, shade, and cozy resting spots
• A predictable environment that reduces stress for outdoor cats

Once the garden fills in, cats are naturally attracted to the movement of grasses, the scent of catnip, and the comfort of soft groundcovers.

 

Where to Place Your Cat Garden

Choose a location that is:

• Away from busy areas, pets, and car traffic
• Quiet and partially enclosed
• Easy for cats to access but protected from disturbances

Many people use the far corner of their yard. If you don’t have fencing, you can create privacy with:

• Trellises
• Shrubs
• Ornamental grasses

Cats feel safest when they can observe without being exposed.

 

What to Include in a Cat Garden

A well‑rounded cat garden can include:

• Water Feature

Cats love the sound of moving water and often dip their paws in. A small pond or cascading fountain adds enrichment and visual interest.

• Sandbox or Outdoor Litter Area

A dedicated sand area keeps cats from digging in your flower beds.
Plant rosemary or peppermint a foot away to help mask odors and provide privacy. 

• Cat House or Shelter

This serves as:

• A resting spot
• A hideaway
• Storage for food, water, and toys

• Cat Grasses

Plant wheat, barley, or oat grass. These grasses help cats digest food and reduce hairballs.

• Cat Herbs

Great choices include:

• Catnip
• Cat thyme
• Valerian
• Peppermint
• Rosemary
• Dandelion

Plant herbs in containers or directly in the garden to create layers of scent and texture.

 

catmint in full bloom 

How to Design Your Cat Garden

1.   Outline the space
Use white marking paint to sketch the garden shape on the ground. A 10×12 area works well for most yards.

2.   Draw your plan
Sketch the layout on paper and color‑code where each feature will go. This helps when buying mulch, gravel, plants, and soil.

3.   Prepare the site

o   Remove rocks, weeds, and grass

o   Loosen the soil

o   Mix in 2 inches of compost

o   Ensure the area drains well

4.   Install the sandbox

o   Dig a hole the size of the box

o   Level the bottom

o   Set the box in place and fill with fine sand

o   Add a stone border

o   Surround with 3 inches of pea gravel

5.   Add the water feature
Place it in the center or where cats can approach from multiple sides.

6.   Plant herbs and grasses

o   Plant grasses in front of herbs

o   Start grass seeds indoors or sow directly

o   Space herbs so they can grow full and bushy

 

Care Tips for a Healthy Cat Garden

• Water herbs and grasses in the morning
• Mulch or add pea gravel around high‑traffic areas
• Deadhead spent blooms to encourage new growth
• Remove dead plants and refresh sand as needed
• Add decorative touches like stepping stones or a cat statue
• Hang wind chimes high enough that cats can’t reach them

 

catnip grows in this garden

A Cat Garden Becomes a Sanctuary

Once your cat garden fills in, you’ll notice the change immediately. Cats will stretch out in the mulch, hide in the grasses, nibble on herbs, and return day after day because they feel safe. It becomes their retreat  and a beautiful, peaceful part of your yard.

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