Garden Skills Installation Methods: 5 Ways to Add AI Coding Skills to Your Agent

Garden Skills supports five distinct installation methods—ranging from one-line npx commands to Git submodules—allowing integration with Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, and other AI coding agents.

The ConardLi/garden-skills repository provides portable AI coding skills that can be added to your development environment through multiple pathways. Choosing the right Garden Skills installation method depends on your workflow requirements, whether you need rapid prototyping, marketplace integration, or reproducible CI artifacts.

Option A: Install via the skills CLI (npx)

The npx-based CLI offers the fastest installation path for agent-agnostic setups. This method auto-detects your target agent and places skills in the correct directory without manual configuration.

When to use this method:

• Quick prototyping across different agents (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex)
• One-off installations without persistent repository clones
• Global installation for cross-project availability

The CLI pulls the latest main commit by default and automatically determines the correct destination: .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/, or the global ~/.skills folder. This logic is documented in the Option A section of [README.md](https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills/blob/main/README.md#option-a--skills-cli-npx).

# Install all skills (latest)

npx skills add ConardLi/garden-skills

# Install only the web-design-engineer skill

npx skills add ConardLi/garden-skills -s web-design-engineer

# Install globally instead of per-project

npx skills add ConardLi/garden-skills -s gpt-image-2 --global

Option B: Claude Code Plugin Marketplace

For Claude Code users preferring marketplace-style management, the plugin marketplace bundles skills into installable packs. This method registers skill folders directly with Claude Code's plugin system.

The marketplace configuration is declared in [.claude-plugin/marketplace.json](https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills/blob/main/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json), which defines plugin packs grouping related skills together.

Run these commands inside Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add ConardLi/garden-skills
/plugin install presentation-skills@garden-skills   # web-video-presentation

/plugin install web-design-skills@garden-skills    # web-design-engineer

/plugin install knowledge-base-skills@garden-skills # kb-retriever

/plugin install image-generation-skills@garden-skills # gpt-image-2

Option C: Pinned ZIP Artifacts from Releases

Pinned ZIP downloads provide immutable, SHA-256-checked artifacts for CI pipelines, air-gapped environments, or scenarios requiring reproducible builds. Each release publishes versioned archives for every skill.

The release scripts in scripts/release/update-readme.mjs automatically update the "Download vX.Y.Z" links in the documentation when new versions are published.

Download and extract a specific skill version:

curl -L https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills/releases/download/web-design-engineer-v1.0.0/web-design-engineer-1.0.0.zip -o web-design-engineer.zip
unzip web-design-engineer.zip -d .claude/skills/

Option D: Manual Copy for Local Development

Manual installation suits local hacking, skill forking, or contributing modifications. This method clones the entire repository and copies specific skill folders into your agent's discovery path.

Agents scan for skill definitions in files named SKILL.md within skill directories. For example, [skills/web-design-engineer/SKILL.md](https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-engineer/SKILL.md) contains the portable definition loaded by the agent.

git clone https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills.git

# For Claude Code:

cp -r garden-skills/skills/web-design-engineer your-project/.claude/skills/

# For generic agents (Cursor, etc.):

cp -r garden-skills/skills/web-design-engineer your-project/.agents/skills/

Option E: Git Submodule for Vendoring

Git submodules allow vendoring skills into larger projects while maintaining the ability to pull upstream updates. This approach is ideal for teams tracking Garden Skills within monorepos who need reproducible deployments.

Add the repository as a submodule, then symlink the desired skill folder into your agent's skill directory. Pin to a released tag for build reproducibility:

git submodule add https://github.com/ConardLi/garden-skills.git vendor/garden-skills
ln -s ../../vendor/garden-skills/skills/web-design-engineer .claude/skills/web-design-engineer

# Pin to a released tag:

cd vendor/garden-skills
git checkout web-design-engineer-v1.0.0

Summary

• CLI (npx) provides the fastest zero-configuration installation for multi-agent workflows
• Plugin marketplace offers native integration specifically for Claude Code users
• Pinned ZIPs deliver immutable, SHA-256-verified artifacts perfect for CI/CD pipelines
• Manual copy enables local modification and skill development
• Git submodules balance vendoring with upstream update capabilities

Frequently Asked Questions

Which installation method is fastest for trying Garden Skills?

The npx CLI method is fastest for initial exploration. Running npx skills add ConardLi/garden-skills auto-detects your agent and installs skills without requiring git clones or manual directory navigation.

How do I install Garden Skills in an air-gapped environment?

Use Option C (Pinned ZIP). Download the SHA-256-checked .zip artifact from the Releases page on an internet-connected machine, transfer the file to your air-gapped system, and unzip it directly into your agent's skills directory.

Can I install only specific skills instead of the entire repository?

Yes. The npx CLI supports the -s flag to specify individual skills (e.g., npx skills add ConardLi/garden-skills -s web-design-engineer). For manual installation, simply copy only the desired skill folder from skills/ rather than the entire repository.

Where does the agent look for skill definitions?

Agents discover skills by scanning for SKILL.md files within skill directories. When installing manually or via submodule, ensure the skill folder (containing SKILL.md) is placed in .claude/skills/ for Claude Code, .agents/skills/ for Cursor/Codex, or ~/.skills/ for global installation.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "instagit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "instagit@latest"]
    }
  }
}