How Garden Pal's Plant Finder Works

What Garden Pal considers

When you set up a garden in Garden Pal, the app takes several factors into account to suggest suitable plants:

Your location Used to determine your climate zone and hardiness rating. Plants that can't survive your winters are filtered out.
Light conditions Full sun, partial shade, or full shade. This is often the biggest filter for what will thrive.
Soil type Clay, sandy, chalky, or loam. Some plants strongly prefer specific soils.
Moisture level Free-draining, average, or damp. A bog-loving plant won't survive in dry sand.

Each plant in the database has recorded tolerances for light, soil, moisture, and hardiness.
When you search or browse, Garden Pal scores each plant against your garden's conditions.
Plants that match well appear first. Those that partially match show with notes on what might not fit.
You can always override filters to explore plants outside your conditions—useful for containers or protected spots.

Be honest about light Most people overestimate how much sun their garden gets. If in doubt, choose a shadier option.
Check your soil A simple squeeze test (see our soil guide) can save you buying plants that will struggle.
Set your location accurately Climate zones can change across just a few miles, especially in hilly or coastal areas.
Use the search filters Narrow by plant type, flower colour, or season of interest to find exactly what you're looking for.

The more information you add about your garden, the better matches you'll get:

Add multiple gardens if you have different areas (e.g., front and back, patio pots).
Update conditions if they change—new tree cover, drainage work, or adding raised beds.
Save plants you like to track what you're considering and compare options.

Not sure what you want?

Start with "Recommended for your garden" on the home screen. It surfaces plants that suit your conditions without needing a specific search.