Basemaps and Map Display: choosing your map background

Why your map background matters

The right background makes mapping easier.

Sometimes you need a clear map with paths and labels. Sometimes you need aerial detail to place plants accurately. Sometimes you want a grid or 3D terrain to understand the site in a different way.

BotanicalMapper lets you choose a base map and add optional overlays, so your map can suit the task in front of you.

In short

A base map is the main background layer
Only one base map is active at a time
Overlays sit on top of the base map, underneath your garden data
Aerial Imagery can be displayed over any of the available base maps
Changing the base map turns overlays off, so re-enable them if needed

Base map vs overlays

There are two useful ideas to understand.

Base map

The base map is the main map style underneath everything else.

It might show roads, woodland, terrain shading, paths, labels, or topographic information. Only one base map can be active at a time.

Overlays

Overlays are optional extra layers drawn on top of the base map.

Examples include:

Aerial Imagery
3D Terrain
Grid

You can use more than one overlay together in some cases. Your plants, landmarks, areas, and shapes always sit above the base map and overlays.

Opening Map Display

On the signed-in Map page, look at the top-right map controls.

Click Map Display, shown with a layers-style icon. When 3D Terrain is on, the button shows a 3D-style icon.

This opens the Map Display panel in the top-right of the map.

To close it:

Click the X
Or click outside the panel

A small © control near the bottom-right of the map can also open Map Display as an attribution shortcut.

This article focuses on the signed-in Map page. The public visitor map has a simpler control set.

Base Maps

Open Map Display, then look under Base Maps.

Only one base map is active at a time. Click the row or its checkbox to choose it.

Countryside Map

Best for: Everyday outdoor use.

This is the default map style, providing a clear view of paths, woodland, and other landscape features, making it ideal for general garden work.

Terrain Map

Best for: Viewing the landscape with less visual clutter.

A simplified map that emphasises terrain and natural features while reducing the amount of map detail.

Streets Map

Best for: Access and navigation.

Displays additional road and access information, making it useful around buildings, entrances, car parks, and urban areas.

Topographic Map (UK only)

Best for: Detailed landscape reference.

An Ordnance Survey-style topographic map available in Great Britain, with enhanced detail for contours, rivers, waterways, rights of way, and other landscape features.

The Topographic Map is only available when your map view is in the UK.

If your view is outside the UK, the option is greyed out. If you are using it and pan outside the UK, BotanicalMapper may switch you back to Countryside Map automatically.

Tip
Use Countryside Map for everyday mapping and Topographic Map when detailed landscape information matters. Turn on the Aerial Imagery overlay whenever you need to compare the map with features visible on the ground.

Overlays

Open Map Display, then look under Overlays.

Overlays are optional layers that sit above the base map and below your garden data.

This means you can keep the base map that is most useful for your task and add extra visual information when you need it.

Available overlays include:

Aerial Imagery
3D Terrain
Grid

Important behaviour

If you change the base map, overlays are turned off.

That means Aerial Imagery, 3D Terrain, and Grid may need to be turned on again after choosing a new base map.

Aerial Imagery

Turn on Aerial Imagery to display detailed aerial photography over your current base map.

This is particularly useful when you need to identify physical features that may not be visible on a conventional map, such as:

Planting beds
Tree canopies
Lawns
Paths
Buildings
Hedges
Borders
Other landscape features

Because Aerial Imagery is an overlay, you do not have to choose between aerial photography and another map style.

For example, you can use aerial imagery over Countryside Map while mapping plants, or combine it with Topographic Map when you also want detailed landscape information.

Aerial imagery is especially helpful when placing plants from photographs or matching mapped features to their real-world positions.

3D Terrain

Turn on 3D Terrain to view the map with terrain relief.

This changes the map into a 3D viewing mode.

When it is on, the app shows:

Area & Shape editing disabled

That means:

Drawing new areas or shapes is disabled
Editing existing areas or shapes is disabled
If an area or shape was selected, the selection may clear

You can still view and work with plants and landmarks. Areas and shapes can still render on the terrain, but editing them needs normal 2D mode.

Turn 3D Terrain off when you are ready to draw or edit areas and shapes again.

Grid

Turn on Grid to add a reference grid over the map.

This can help with:

Spacing
Rough measurement
Checking layout
Understanding scale

When enabled, you can choose:

Grid Size
Opacity

Grid size options run from small to large, including:

2m
10m
25m
50m
100m
250m
500m
1km

The grid colour adapts somewhat to light and dark base maps.

Combining overlays

You can combine overlays to give you more information without changing your underlying base map.

For example:

Aerial Imagery plus Grid
Aerial Imagery over Countryside Map
Aerial Imagery over Topographic Map
Aerial detail with a 10m or 25m grid for checking spacing and scale

This can be particularly useful when the aerial photograph helps you identify physical features while the underlying map provides labels, paths, contours, or other reference information.

3D Terrain is best treated as a different viewing mode. It is useful for exploring slope and landform, but less useful for detailed editing.

Mapping with both labels and aerial detail

Choose Countryside Map, Streets Map, or Topographic Map
Turn on Aerial Imagery
Use the underlying map for reference while using the aerial photograph to identify physical features

Showing slope

Turn on 3D Terrain
Move around the site
Turn it off again before drawing or editing areas and shapes

Attribution and copyright

The Map Display panel includes attribution lines for map and imagery sources, such as MapTiler, OpenStreetMap, Esri imagery, and OS data where relevant.

These attributions are part of using map data properly, so they should remain visible and respected.

Troubleshooting

Aerial Imagery disappeared — changing the base map turns overlays off, so turn Aerial Imagery on again
Map went flat after switching base map — turn 3D Terrain back on
You cannot edit an area — check that 3D Terrain is off
Topographic Map (UK only) is unavailable — pan or zoom into the UK, or use Countryside Map
The map looks too busy — turn off Aerial Imagery or Grid, or adjust the available opacity settings
Your overlays disappeared after changing maps — changing the base map resets the overlays, so re-enable the ones you need

Closing checklist

Opened Map Display
Chosen the right base map for the task
Turned on Aerial Imagery if you need real-world ground detail
Re-enabled any overlays after changing base map
Turned off 3D Terrain before drawing or editing areas and shapes
Checked your overlay settings if the map looks too busy