Garden Railway Forum

Hi! I am starting my first garden railway in my backyard in the US (New Jersey). I have a lot of ideas but no real plan for how to make it work with the existing plants and landscaping. I tried searching for a landscape architect who knows garden railways with no results. Any suggestions on where to find someone who can help?

Interesting question. Not heard of a professional garden railway landscaper. In the past I would have pointed you the the excellent Garden Railways magazine but, alas, that is no more.

However, there are some of their free booklets available for download which might be helpful - eg
https://www.trains.com/grw/beginners/fr ... ilroading/

Rik

jg2025 wrote: Thu May 01, 2025 5:22 pm Hi! I am starting my first garden railway in my backyard in the US (New Jersey). I have a lot of ideas but no real plan for how to make it work with the existing plants and landscaping. I tried searching for a landscape architect who knows garden railways with no results. Any suggestions on where to find someone who can help?

Rather than search landscape architects with garden rail experience, is there an association of garden rail modellers in the US, equivalent to the UK 16mmNGA or G1MRA? Asking in that sort of group may well reveal people who have used professional design help. Just a thought.

These people may be able to help
https://www.traininstallations.com/
https://pacifichorticulture.org/article ... y-gardens/
https://www.morrisarboretum.org/blog/ga ... along-1998

Personally I would just sit in the garden with my favorite tipple and let my imagination run wild.

AI suggestion
https://www.google.com/search?client=fi ... e8PisrfgAc

jg2025 wrote: Thu May 01, 2025 5:22 pm Hi! I am starting my first garden railway in my backyard in the US (New Jersey). I have a lot of ideas but no real plan for how to make it work with the existing plants and landscaping. I tried searching for a landscape architect who knows garden railways with no results. Any suggestions on where to find someone who can help?

I'd second Lonsdaler's suggestion re a local garden railway group, either for ideas, personal advice or landscape architects. I found the 16mm association (in the UK) handbook to be excellent re dealing with practicalities.

I'd also ask how much (or little) disruption to existing plants and landscape you are prepared for. There are several main ways to lay track for instance. You could sink metal posts into the ground and run treated timber planks between them, laying the track on top. The height of these could vary between ground level and chest height (or more!) depending on what you want. I plan to use a concrete and aggregate ('breeze') block base for much of my line, this should be solid and long lasting - but I will have to dig a trench nearly a foot down and across. Which plays hell with your existing plants, especially those with wide root spread. (I have spent a couple of hours today moving smaller plants into temporary accommodation and off the construction site). When the new PWay is built and all concrete/mortar fully set, there'll be plenty of earthmoving and replanting. A post and plank PWay could potentially be less destructive and time consuming - but need more maintenance/replacement every so often.

Personal preferences/prejudices:

if operating live steam, make the steaming up area a comfortable height off the ground

for good scenic atmosphere, have the 'country' sections of a line as close to ground level as possible

you are building a 'real' railway to a small scale, so follow conventional railway engineering and avoid steep gradients - 1 in 30 is plenty and sharp curves

you can combine railways and gardening and be creative/artistic - no planning permission (zoning for the US?) needed for your little line!


Do a survey of your site - no special tools needed, just a tape measure, some stakes, paint or waterproof strips of tape, a spirit level and your mark one eyeball. And feel free to post a diagram of the results and any thoughts you have had.

If we could see the landscape someone could possibly offer some suggestions
You can probably do it yourself, all you need is a shovel and some motivation....