Creating a Project
Start a new garden design from the drawings list page.
Every design in Gardenly3D lives inside a project. When you sign in you land on the Projects list, which shows all projects on your account organized in folders. Clicking New Project opens a setup dialog where you name the project, choose a canvas size and unit system, and configure the drawing grid — all of which can be changed later. Once confirmed, Gardenly3D creates the project and its first drawing in the cloud and opens the drawing editor ready for you to start designing.
Create a new drawing
Click the New Drawing button to create a fresh canvas. You can name it and set the unit system (metric or imperial) before starting.
Open an existing drawing
Click any drawing card to open it. The editor loads with your previous work intact.
Enter a project name
Type a descriptive name in the Project name field — for example the client name or site address. The name appears in the Projects list and on exported deliverables, so make it recognizable. You can rename the project at any time from the Projects list.
Choose a unit system
Select Metric or Imperial from the Unit system dropdown. Gardenly3D auto-detects your preference from your browser locale, so this is often already set correctly. All internal measurements are stored in meters regardless of which system you choose — switching units later only changes how values are displayed, never the underlying data.
Set the canvas size
Enter the Width and Depth of the garden area in the Canvas size fields. Use the unit your project is in (meters for metric, feet for imperial). Switching the unit system automatically converts the values to a sensible equivalent size. The canvas is just a working boundary — you can draw outside it and resize it later in Project Settings.
Configure the drawing grid
The Grid size field sets the snapping interval for the drawing canvas. A 0.5 m (or 2 ft) grid suits most residential garden projects. You can also expand the Advanced section to fine-tune display precision for lengths, areas, and volumes — for example choosing to show measurements to one decimal place instead of two.
Confirm and start designing
Click Create Project to confirm. Gardenly3D creates the project and drawing in the cloud, initializes the canvas with a default green lawn, and opens the drawing editor on the 2D plan view. The project is saved automatically — there is no manual save step required.
Gardenly3D auto-detects your preferred unit system from your browser locale. If you work with clients in both metric and imperial regions, you can change the unit system at any time in Project Settings without affecting stored measurements.
Every project starts with a default green lawn filling the canvas. This gives you an immediate visual base to draw on top of. You can delete, resize, or restyle the lawn at any time from the 2D drawing editor.
Deleting a project from the Projects list is permanent. Use the Recently Deleted option (accessible via the Projects list) to restore a project within the recovery window. After that window the project and all its drawings are gone.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I move between the design canvas and the other project sections?
Opening a project takes you straight to the drawing editor on the Design section. To reach the other sections — Presentation, Terrain, Survey, Goals, Tasks, Cost, Documents, and Client — open the Sections menu (the hamburger button at the top-left of the top bar) and pick a section. Everything stays in the same window.
Can I change the canvas size after creating the project?
Yes. Open the Sections menu (top-left hamburger) and choose Settings, then go to Project and update the canvas width and depth. The existing entities on the canvas are not affected — the canvas boundary just resizes around them.
How do I switch from metric to imperial (or vice versa) in an existing project?
Open Settings from the Sections menu, go to Project > Units & formatting, and change the unit system. All dimensions instantly redisplay in the new unit. Internal storage stays in meters — no data is lost or scaled.
Do I need to save my work manually?
No. Gardenly3D syncs all changes to the cloud automatically as you work. You can close the tab or sign out at any time without losing anything. There is no Save button.
How do I organize projects into folders?
On the Projects list, click the folder icon or the New Folder button to create a folder. Drag a project row onto a folder to move it inside. You can nest folders to match your studio's filing structure.