Cottage

Over the centuries many an artist has been inspired, painted or written of the cottage garden. Planting a cottage garden is perhaps the simplest flower garden of all. The style is informal and personal, the emphasis being on the pleasure of growing plants and enjoying their flowers, form, fruit and scent throughout the seasons rather than attending to regimented borders and maintaining immaculate lawns. Cottage gardens are often very dense, filled with all the plants you could possibly want.

 

Key Features

  • Randomisation of planting – smaller plants at the front, gradually getting larger toward the middle or back of the garden bed
  • Assortment of colour, texture, shape and scent
  • Flowers year around. Cottage gardens attract lots of bees, birds, butterflies and reptiles
  • Herbs are a must have! You can even mix in a few vegetables, berries and fruit trees in the beds
  • Natural mediums such as wood or stone edging, if any at all, brown bark mulch, wood chip or gravel paths
  • Bird bath, fountain or pond
  • Arches and arbours for climbing plants such as Roses, Banksia Rose or Jasmine
  • Repurposed household and garden objects as planters or sculpture: jugs, boots, broken pots, cups, ladder, rusted wheelbarrow, wine barrel, stumps etc
  • A bench to admire the hustle and bustle in your busy garden!

 

Maintenance

The maintenance can vary depending on the plant you have chosen. A Native Australian Cottage garden can we less needy than an English Cottage garden as the plants respond well to the climate.
The garden will need watering during summer and a light feed regularly during the warmer months so long as the garden beds have been well prepared with compost and manure before planting.
Flowering plants benefit from dead-heading as it will promote flower growth and should you have an English Box hedge or similar, that will require yearly trimming.

 

Tools

Gardening gloves, watering can, trowel, shovel, garden fork, shears, loppers, pruning saw, line trimmer (if you have a lawn, to maintain the garden bed edge and stop the grass entering the garden bed)

123456›»