A cottage garden embraces the visual complexity and low-maintenance appeal of informal arrangements. As opposed to well-manicured gardens, which consist of neat plots and regularly pruned shrubs and herbs, cottage gardens have living plant communities that are more similar to those observed in the wild. Initially perceived as messy, dense, or possibly even old-fashioned, they can, arguably, be the most magical of outdoor spaces.
A casual stroll through a cottage garden brings you face-to-face with a diversity of native plants, both ornamental and edible. These are often crucial to the survival of endemic pollinators and grazers, which may rely on small fragments of their natural habitats for access to food and ideal conditions for reproduction. A large garden might even be outfitted with a wildlife pond that doubles as a reservoir, providing clean water for visiting animals.
Inspired by gardens that were attached to English cottages in the 1800s, today’s cottage gardens highlight the functionality of a planted area as a means to obtain culinary herbs and vegetables, maintain flowers to add charm to the home’s exteriors, and sustain livestock or swarms of honeybees. Devoid of outlandish or overly imposing structures, these beautifully complement the traditional materials used to construct the cottages themselves.
1) Enhance the fertility and porousness of your garden’s substrates.
Good soil is crucial to creating a high-quality and long-lasting cottage garden. An organic, well-draining mixture, where a high diversity of densely planted perennials are likely to thrive, can drastically reduce your garden’s maintenance needs. When provided with ample nutrients and the right amount of moisture, your plants are less likely to require regular fertilization. Good soil should also promote their establishment, allowing their roots to grow sturdy as they extend through deeper layers of substrate and increase their spread.
The type of soil in your garden dictates exactly which species you can cultivate. Conducting a soil test should help you determine your garden’s profile and select appropriate species. It should also help you pinpoint the necessary amendments for improvement. As cottage gardens are typically enriched with nutrients to begin with, the annual addition of organic matter, possibly in the form of compost, would be wise.
2) Start small and simple.
Cottage garden designs are seldom fully fleshed out within a single go, partly because plants take time to root and grow. Moreover, not all of your selected species will share the same seasonal preferences. It makes sense to start with just one or a few plots at a time. Other parts of the garden may be simultaneously amended or built (in the case of lattices, fences, ponds, etc.) while the initial plots are allowed to flourish.
Starting small should also help you determine just how much you’re able to maintain or manage within an allotted set of hours per day/week for gardening work. It sets the scale for which your resources may be efficiently distributed and used. Moreover, it gives you time to grow several plants to their mature forms, which may be propagated further to fill out more sections of the garden. For example, a single plot of wildflowers may produce enough seeds and viable cuttings to fill out more plots in the succeeding year. In the same way, a single fruit tree can lead to a small orchard!
3) Think about whether you wish to enclose your space or keep it open.
A fence may be a key functional element of private cottage gardens. Often used to grow valuable herbs, crops, and blooms, gardens may be fenced off to discourage wild animals and passersby from damaging the perimeter and from taking any plants or animals. Of course, in less developed or rural areas, a boundary may not be necessary and you might be free to let your native plants spread to beyond the garden’s edges.
If you do intend to install a wall or fence around your cottage garden, ensure that it is made with sturdy yet traditional materials. Antique-looking fences, with gaps through which trailing plants may weave their stems and eventually coat in foliage, should beautifully maintain an informal aesthetic. A bamboo fence or a stone wall may also elicit a similar effect. You may need to add a lattice or a supporting structure to these to rapidly naturalize them with vines. Edging plants along the base of a fence should soften your garden’s overall appearance.
4) Mix and match native flowering plants.
A mix of eye-catching annual wildflowers and perennial flowering shrubs, vines, and trees should transform a cottage garden into a true sight for sore eyes. One of the most important elements in informal arrangements, native flowering plants beautifully contrast lush foliage. Their blooms are a testament to the fertility of an outdoor space. Those with a more old-fashioned look are more likely to complement the exteriors of a cottage. These can be grown right along the borders of the structure or be supported on a lattice or container mounted onto the cottage’s walls and windowsills.
There’s nothing quite like a diversity of roses – climbing or shrub-like – to achieve the romantic look of an old English cottage. When supported by arbors or propped onto raised pots, their fragrant and colorful blooms should invite your garden’s visitors to walk its rugged paths and explore its many wonders. Plots may be densely covered in more sets of wildflowers, chosen for their medicinal, edible, visual, or wildlife appeal. For multi-dimensional complexity, combine cultivars with various heights and leaf forms.
5) Grow low-maintenance shrubs and small trees.
For varied structure that can draw attention to taller heights around the garden, grow a diversity of low-maintenance shrubs and trees. Taller plants can be placed along the perimeter or corners of your property. Those that are intended for growth as specimen plants may have a more central location, increasing their chances of being focal components of your “casual” design. Tough, deciduous, or evergreen perennials would be your best choices as they are more likely to be long-lived and should last through the year.
Avoid growing excessively tall or fast-spreading plants as these may attempt to dominate larger sections of the garden and may deprive other plants of sunlight and nutrients. Trees should be proportional to the space in which they are cultivated. Bear in mind that taller varieties with extensive canopies would, undoubtedly, be more difficult to maintain and may have root systems that are several times wider than their trunks are tall.
6) Cultivate groundcover plants in key areas.
Self-spreading groundcover plants of the non-invasive kind should add a forested or meadow-like touch to a cottage garden. Many of these can tolerate mild foot traffic and can take the place of turf or fast-spreading grasses. Low-growing, typically characterized by trailing stems that can send out adventitious roots, these play a few important roles wherever they are found; as they aid in stabilizing soils, they may also act as living mulch around larger plants, compete with troublesome weeds, and fill out unsightly gaps and spaces.
Some fantastic choices for groundcover plants in cottage gardens include creeping thyme, moss phlox, and common periwinkle. Healthy stands of these species may be invaluable once they have set out well-established roots. As a bonus, they produce seasonal blooms that can thoroughly convert the ground into carpets of color. To accentuate their best features, ensure that they receive ample moisture and sunshine. Note that, while some varieties may thrive beneath trees and shrubs, others will require full sun exposure to thrive.
7) Maintain a plot of herbs.
Culinary and medicinal herbs are classical additions to cottage gardens. In fact, some of the oldest cottage gardens were developed primarily to sustain plots of useful herbs. Even if you don’t intend to harvest or use these plants for their herbal potential, their cultivation is a rewarding experience as their foliage and blooms play important roles in both outdoor and indoor settings. Their fragrant, oil-rich tissues are packed with metabolites that may repel many pests and herbivores. This is why they are often grown as companion plants for more susceptible crops in vegetable gardens.
The scented spikes of lavender, grey-green and hairy leaves of sage, and the tough, hemlock-like foliage of rosemary are some of the most common sightings in European cottage gardens with thriving herbs. Your selection would depend on the conditions of your area as well as your personal needs for specific types of herbs. If you have a knack for cooking Mediterranean-style food, for example, you might wish to maintain plots of basil, parsley, thyme, and dill.
8) Carve out a pathway and line it with natural materials.
To easily make your way through your plots of vibrant blooms, fragrant herbs, and leafy shrubs and trees, you’ll need a few pathways. These can be placed in areas where they help divide the garden into distinct sections. Instead of creating a straight path, consider carving out curved ones that gracefully meander through both sunlit and shaded spaces. This should give the garden a more organic finish, complementing the softened exteriors of a cottage.
9) Install a wildlife pond or rain garden.
If both your space and free time for general maintenance allow it, add a water feature to your cottage garden. A wildlife pond, simple fountain, or bird bath should bring a wealth of benefits, ultimately increasing biodiversity and aiding in the recovery and survival of visiting animals. If certain sections of the garden are frequently moistened or tend to remain boggy, cultivate a rain or bog garden. Water-loving plants can transform these tricky zones, improving the quality of the substrate as their roots take hold and spread.
10) Set your garden apart with practical décor and outdoor furniture.
If you wish to spend your late spring to summer days outdoors, appreciating the colors and critters of your cottage garden, you’ll need to add a few more key elements to complete the scene. A simple, woven table and set of chairs, made with natural materials, should have you inviting your friends for a cup of tea or for an afternoon spent collecting blooms while sharing a bottle of peachy rosé.
Décor with traditional finishes (e.g., a wooden ladder on which hanging plants and vines are attached, marble sculptures for character, and simple stools for propping up terracotta pots) may also complement your plants without altering the general theme.
11) Break the rules, but keep in mind that simplicity is vital.
Cottage gardens are charming in that they are simple, low-maintenance, and timeless. While there are no true rules to creating or maintaining one, it pays to make choices that require less work, money, and time to execute.
Simplicity in a cottage garden is not signified by streamlining a selection of plants or minimizing the number of shrubs and trees present. Rather, it is denoted by plain intentions for cultivating a garden in the first place. It is found in the effortless harmony between thriving plants that interact with one another, permitting Mother Nature to go about her daily workings. That said, there’s so much room for experimentation and personality in cottage gardens that you might as well entertain your wildest ideas!
