Saga Haver & Landskab: Designing gardens for human wellbeing and a better tomorrow

By Anders Lorenzen | Photos: Sanne Bartkowiak

In 2022, inspired by her longtime passion for gardens and plants, Sanne Bartkowiak set up Saga Haver og Landskab – a small landscape design studio in Copenhagen.

Spending time with her dad in their garden was for many years just a sweet memory, but it slowly grew into a desire to create beautiful outdoor spaces for others.

A series of courses in Landscape Architecture at the University of Copenhagen gave Sanne Bartkowiak the knowledge, skills and courage to quit her job in communications for the construction industry, follow her childhood passion and establish Saga Haver og Landskab.

Since then, she hasn’t looked back. “I really enjoy my new professional life and I’m proud of having built a sustainable business in just one year,” she says.

The objective of her garden-design venture is first and foremost to create well-disposed green outdoor spaces for other people. Concurrently, Bartkowiak also presents solutions to climate change and the biodiversity crisis, often using both drought-tolerant and native plants in her designs. However, it is important for her to underline that not all spaces are suitable for wild gardens and that the prime objective lies in the collaborative effort and spirit she has with her clients, “It’s my clients’ wishes and dreams I’m helping to release,” she says.

Saga Haver & Landskab: Designing gardens for human wellbeing and a better tomorrow

Planted in 2022, the lushness of differentshade perennials makes a walk through the garden an enjoyable experience.

On each project, Bartkowiak applies a tailor-made approach using the best resources available to design gardens that, according to the clients wishes, range from very practical and easy-to maintain gardens to gardens with an artistic touch in the structure and content.

In her work, there’s an emphasis on a lush and inviting expression that makes us want to spend time in our gardens. “Being surrounded by plants, we get both a physical and mental pause from our busy modern lives and a connection to something profound – to me, this is essential for our well-being,” she says. In addition, it is key for Bartkowiak to not just design gardens for one season, but for all four seasons, ensuring people and wildlife will benefit from them throughout the year.

On a personal note, Bartkowiak says, “being able to give up sitting in front of a computer screen all day and instead spend time in nature and gardens has been transformational,” adding that helping her clients to fulfil their garden dreams is very meaningful and a job she enjoys the whole process of.