The cottage garden is a unique style which makes use of traditional, regional plants, informal style construction, and an eclectic mix of edible and ornamental plants. English in origin, it is all about charm and grace instead of formal sophistication and grandeur. It is an ideal garden for people who do not have time to maintain lawns and gardens full of hardscaping maintenance. These types of gardens are usually small and simple, being perfect for those who do not need to mow the lawn and plant trees. You need to have good lawn planning to create an ideal setting and enjoy the elegance of your cottage garden.
The cottage garden can be a lush, tropical themed setting with a mix of hollyhocks, honeysuckle, bluebirds, and other flowers in bright and cheery colors. The hollyhocks and scallions serve as focal points in the landscape design. Under the shade of large trees, hanging baskets with cut flowers or fruit in fruit boxes, or a mixture of flowers and vegetables on the beds will add color to the cottage garden. Hanging baskets and pots in hues such as purple, mauve, or lilac also look enchanting in such a setting.
Cottage garden planting is the perfect way to add life and color to the area surrounding your house. Different plants can be brought in at different times of the year, depending on the climatic changes. If you live in an area with lots of sun and warm temperatures from early spring through late fall, you can plant pink daffodils, tulips, geraniums, daisies, sunflowers, and sunflowers in the summer. A mix of perennials and annuals planted in full sun, partial shade, and with low levels of soil acidity will work well in most climates. As for perennial plants, you can plant sunflowers, creeping ivy, sweet peas, and wildflowers. If you prefer the charm of planting annuals only, that is fine as long as you don’t have many of them.
Many people who create their own cottage gardens also like to include herbs. Most herbs are native to at least one area of North America and if you can find the right growing conditions for them, you will find they add wonderful flavors to your meals. Many of the herbs you can choose from are those that grow well in the shade as well as those that grow best when temperatures are high. Some of the most common flowers planted in cottage gardens or as herbs include chives, basil, bay laurel, chervil, chrysanthemum, dill, fennel, garlic, ginger, juniper, lemon balm, mint, nutmeg, rosemary, and thyme.
When it comes to borders, fences make great borders. Fences are available in many sizes and materials. You can use wood, wrought iron, plastic, or vinyl. Some cottages may even have built-in fences. Other ideas for fences include using wooden planters with shorter stems, plantainers, wire mesh, or picket fences.
Cottage gardeners who want a garden with a more primitive look might use rambling roses. Rambling roses do not have their leaves until the plant grows very tall. Then the plants grow along the rambling trails of the plant, and look like small bushes of climbing plants.