Visitors to English Cottage Gardens often stop to take in the beauty that they offer. When a number of elements work together a garden can become almost magical. You, too, can create the magic of English Cottage Gardens without living in the country, or spending years perfecting your gardening skills.
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Check PriceThe answer lies in appreciating the natural network and flourishing teamwork among the plants in a cottage garden from early spring to late fall. Here is a list of 12 key plants that make up the core of cottage garden plants.
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1. Climbing Roses – The Base Of Romance
A classic look for cottage style gardens are roses that climb over walls and arches over doors. Great options are the disease resistant climbers 'Eden' and 'New Dawn' that bloom over and over again all season. Position these climbers near structures to create those signature cottage garden style frames.
2. Lavender – The Aroma Foundation
The pleasant smell of English lavender is released when it's touched. It also has nice silvery foliage that draws beneficial insects. Its silver leaves also bloom for months. Lavender is good at helping to define the natural pathways in your garden. Its therapeutic scent should be experienced by everyone which is what makes it a great border plant for pathways.
3. Foxgloves – the vertical drama.
These tall spike-shaped flowers are great for adding vertical interest in your cottage garden, as well as contributing to the wild appearance you may want. They self-seed annually, so you can find them in various locations the following season, keeping the ‘organized chaos’ feel. For the best cottage garden effect, go for the brightest color mixes.
4. Sweet Peas – Partners in Climbing
These climbing plants can cut flowers for multiple months, plus they can help make ‘living walls’. To get the most out of them, place some obelisks in the beds and train the climbers up the obelisks. You will create vertical interest and give further support to adjacent plants. The evening scent is entrancing and adds to the enjoyment of sunset walks in the garden.
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5. Delphiniums – Attention Grabbing Spikes
It is difficult to think about cottage gardens without flowering plants. Out of all the heights, drama and impact with flowers the back of the list are the delphiniums. It is best to plant them at the back of a border next to a fence or wall as they may need wind protection since their flowers are top heavy and the wind would break them. The first flowering is followed by the plants being cut back and they will give a second flush of flowers in late summer.
6. Hollyhocks – The Self-Seeding Guardians
In traditional cottage gardens, these plants create beautiful natural partitions and conceal bad views as they self-seed and scatter all over the garden. They can also provide height at the back of the borders. To achieve the authentic wild cottage garden style, allow them to self-seed.
7. Catmint – The Lovely Flower
With this perennial, you will get lovely rounded clusters of blue-purple blooms that compliment all your garden plants. The Soft Mound variety also withstands drought. From spring to fall, the flowers will be blooming and providing nectar to pollinators. Wonderful for use as a filler to soften hard edges and transition areas in the garden.
8. Peonies – The Spring Stars
You can grow perennials, which last a long time and require almost no upkeep year after year. Because they grow back quickly, you can plant them anywhere, and they have great looking leaves that last through the whole season. To get the longest possible blooming span, select different varieties.
9. Hardy Geraniums – Bloom Reliability
This dependable perennial will flower from spring through fall! This creates a more carpet-like ground cover in which it helps with weed suppression while also continuously adding color into the garden. It beautifully intersperses and fills the gaps with other plants. For example, Rozanne is a great selection as she does bloom non stop!
10. Astilbe – The Brighteners For The Shade
Tree and shrub borders create shade in the cottage garden area that can be brightened with the colorful textures of feathery plumes. Their fern-like foliage is a good contrast to the foliage of larger plants. In the shady areas, they create natural partnerships with ferns and moisture-loving hostas.
11. Campanula – The Beauty of Cottages
Bell flowers self-seed in small cracks and gaps in cottage gardens and give an important effect of 'I grew here naturally'. They blue and white flowers go well with every other colour in the garden and also attract pollinating insects throughout the season.
12. The Perfect Partner, Alchemilla mollis (Lady's Mantle)
This plant works well with all types of gardens! The dew on its gentle, wavy leaves amplifies its beauty, making them look\ like shiny jewels! The flowers of chartreuse color are an excellent match to pair with any other colors in the garden. The calm color of the plant is great to neutralize the strong visuals of other plants like roses, easing the transition between garden areas.
A cottage garden looks great when the plants are mixed up and are different heights. Try putting tall delphiniums and hollyhocks at the back, medium height roses and foxgloves in the middle, and catmint and geraniums at the front. To help unify the entire design, sweet peas can be added to climb through all the layers for some vertical breaks.
Collaboration with nature is the key to success! When possible, let plants self-seed and select their own locations. Celebrate the beauty of the garden’s disorder, and remember that cottage-style gardens should have a bit of a wild look. With these twelve plants, you can capture the essence of a delightful English cottage garden, making every day feel like a fairytale walk.
