The Molin Garden Room

A new green space has taken shape on historic ground – where Ulla Molin once transformed the way we view gardens. In the Molin Garden Room, her timeless philosophy meets a contemporary perspective – calm, sensory, and full of life.

A new green space has taken shape on historic ground at Norrviken – where, in 1961, Ulla Molin initiated Sweden’s first major garden exhibition. In spring 2025, a new garden room has emerged, where her timeless vision meets today’s perspective – a union of form, function, and verdant beauty in every stone path and harmonious planting.

The Molin Garden Room is a heartfelt tribute to one of Sweden’s most influential garden reformers. Designed by Norrviken’s head gardener Olof Green in collaboration with garden designer Pernilla Å Fogelmark, the garden carries forward Ulla’s idea of the garden as a living extension of the home – a place for rest, work, and joy, where every detail is filled with meaning.

A legacy in bloom

Ulla Molin saw the garden as a composition of green rooms – with winding paths, open spaces, and intimate corners all working together in harmony. Her journey began right here at Norrviken, as an 18-year-old apprentice at the Fredrika Bremer Garden School. In 1961, she returned with the vision of "The Outdoor Room", a groundbreaking exhibition that reshaped how we view gardens – not as mere decoration, but as an extension of the home.

Reused materials, brick paving and ceramics

In the new Molin Garden Room, Ulla’s ideas take on new life. Reused materials and carefully selected plants are central: reclaimed paving bricks from older gardens and settings, alongside specially crafted ceramic blocks by ceramicist Lisa Wohlfahrt of Mölle Krukmakeri.

Many of the core plant structures have also been reused, including privet hedges and all boxwood. Perennials such as lavender, sage, wild ginger, ferns, sweet woodruff and ornamental grasses have been transplanted from other parts of the garden.

Friendship, design and creativity

Throughout the garden runs a thread of collaboration and creativity – in the spirit shared by Ulla Molin and her close friend and colleague, designer Signe Persson-Melin. Together they paved the way for a modern garden philosophy where aesthetics and everyday life coexisted. In the Molin Garden Room, Signe’s design language can be seen in the paving patterns, pots from Byarum’s Bruk, and details reminiscent of her timeless work.

Stories are told in the small details: a winding path leads to a gravel courtyard with a low circular form; a workspace hides behind wisteria and wooden screens; and beneath the canopy of trees in the arbour, benches invite rest and reflection.

What defines a Ulla Molin garden?

A garden in the spirit of Ulla Molin is a thoughtful interplay of form, function, and feeling. Here, the garden becomes an extension of the home – a place for everyday life and peaceful pauses. It’s where simplicity is celebrated, variation is welcomed, and every element – from paving to foliage – carries intention. At the heart lies the whole: functional, beautiful, and in tune with the site. 

Key design elements:

Plant choices

  • Groundcovers such as wild ginger, periwinkle, sweet woodruff, burnet, and pussytoes
  • Multi-stemmed shrubs and sculpted evergreens
  • Climbing plants draping fences and walls

Composition

  • Clearly defined spaces – without enclosing them
  • Meandering paths that spark curiosity
  • Intimate seating for rest and reflection
  • Organic forms, rarely strictly symmetrical

Colour palette

  • Soft tones: greys, silvers, purples, blues, and a variety of greens
  • Understated with occasional floral highlights
  • Focus on foliage texture and form more than blooms

Materials and structure

  • Mosaic paving – reusing mixed materials in creative patterns
  • Gravel and diabase chips for tactile and colourful surfaces
  • Furnish your garden like your home: with pots, urns and birdbaths
  • Terraces and patios connecting house and garden

Draw inspiration from Ulla Molin’s green philosophy

A garden in Ulla Molin’s spirit is like a living composition – built from spaces and rhythms, where every plant, stone, and path holds its place and meaning. Here, simplicity and natural expression meet thoughtful design. It’s not about excess, but about calm, variation, and harmony – creating small surprises and cohesive wholes.

Whether you dream of a full garden or a tiny green nook on a balcony, you can take something home from the Molin Garden Room: a sense of closeness to nature and a reminder that simplicity is often the most beautiful path.

Planting highlights from the Molin Garden Room

1. Eastern Entrance
Boxwood, yew, and Dutchman's pipe

8. The Courtyard
London plane, mulberry, boxwood, Virginia creeper, grapevine, clematis, ivy, masterwort, lady's mantle, and daylily

2. Plum Grove
Cherry plum, apple, pear, yew, ivy, gaultheria, purple hydrangea, wild ginger, Brunnera macrophylla, Omphalodes, Pulmonaria, Lenten rose, tufted hair grass, silver hair grass, ostrich fern, and martagon lily

9. The Roundel
Serviceberry, dwarf pine, butterfly bush, lavender, bearded iris, Siberian iris, and lamb's ear

3. The Arbour
Apple, dwarf cherry, boxwood, ivy, cherry laurel, privet, hydrangea paniculata, Korean azalea, tree peony, hybrid tea rose, Carex, Epimedium, sweet woodruff, ostrich fern, and Lenten rose

10. Signe’s Place
Southern beech, silver pear, yew, and boxwood

4. Amelanchier Path
Copper serviceberry, boxwood, privet, and wood aster

11. The Terrace
Boxwood, bamboo, agapanthus, and houseleek

5. The Molin Pavilion
Crabapple, rhododendron, shrub rose, climbing rose, bamboo, boxwood, bearberry cotoneaster, bleeding heart, masterwort, lady fern, periwinkle, dwarf cornel, sweet woodruff, and wild ginger

12. Western Entrance
London plane, Kentucky wisteria, boxwood, ivy, silver hair grass, and masterwort

6. The Stage
Yew, lavender, purple sage, meadow sage, wormwood, tufted hair grass, silver statice, lamb's ear, cudweed, bedstraw, silver speedwell, pussytoes, giant pussytoes, baby's breath, allium, creeping thyme, burnet, and dark star hyacinth

13. Kitchen Garden
Seasonal vegetables and herbs

7. Sun Hollow
Black pine, summer lilac, butterfly bush, sea buckthorn, shrub rose, tufted hair grass, blueblossom, anemone hepatica, and lily of the valley