Cottage Garden Plants - 30 Plants with Romantic Charm

There is just something appealing about an English cottage style garden. This popular aesthetic is both romantic and charming with its abundance of brightly colored flowers, bold textures, and its free-flowing carefree look. Hi this is Amy from Gardening Know-How and I invite you to join me as we take a page right out of Claude Monet's handbook to create a whimsical cottage garden with colorful perennials While cottage gardens are trendy these days, they did provide a solution to those with a lack of garden space in the days of Old England. Many of the workers in the villages owned small homes with even smaller gardens. These gardens would have to supply the family with fresh produce. Many families would have gone hungry if they had not had the benefit of homegrown food. Their garden would consist of vegetables and mixed fruits and amongst this array of produce they would also grow flowers to help attract pollinators to their crops. As time went on and the era of romance evolved, these particular plants were considered to affect us emotionally and what we know today as the cottage garden was born out of this movement. One of the most famous cottage gardens was designed by the French impressionist painter Claude Monet. The informal design of a cottage garden lends itself well to both large gardens and small spaces. Don't be afraid to add plants close together or intermix shrubs with perennials. Plus the closer you plant the less of a chance that weeds have a chance to germinate and grow. Go for a variety of shapes, textures, and flower colors just keeping the best rule of thumb to plant tall in the back and short in the front. For a more aesthetic look try planting the same type of plant in groupings of odd numbers such as threes or fives. Hardscaping elements may also be added to a cottage garden. This type of garden is often walled off by a fence or attractive stone wall. You could also add bird feeders, walkways, arbors, or a bench for seating. The most important part in planning a cottage garden is of course the plants. You will need to select plants that accommodate the garden's light conditions, soil type, and moisture levels. The plants are generally grouped closely together so it is best to choose plants that will work together in unison. Flowers without a doubt are the most known feature of cottage gardens and perennial plants are featured most prominently. Let's take a look at some of the most popular options. Starting in the back of the border these tall perennials provide a nice backdrop for their shorter growing neighbors. Box glove, delphinium, hollyhock, tall bearded iris, baptisia, or add vertical interest with a sweet pea vine. One step down are those perennials usually growing 18 to 36 inches tall. Bee balm, lupins, peony, lavender, black-eyed susan, butterfly weed, yarrow, the purple coneflower, shasta daisies, garden flocks, and daylily. To edge the border these low growers are all good choices. Dianthus, catmint, and campanula. While perennial plants are most common, some annuals grown from seed and some fall planted bulbs can also be a part of the design. Zinnias are bright and colorful, make terrific cut flowers, and easy to grow from seed. Check out our video on how easy it really is to grow zinnias from seed. Other flowers include cosmos, daffodil, the large globe allium, tulips, and for a true cottage garden grow produce or herbs amongst all of the flowers using whatever space is available to you. If you have a bit more space to work with there are a few traditional shrubs to use in a cottage garden. The most popular cottage garden shrub is the rose. Whether a shrub rose or climber, the heavy petal count of an English rose is right at home in this space. Hydrangeas come in many different shapes, colors, and varieties making them a good choice as well. Their big flowers are romantic and make perfect plants for a cottage garden. The butterfly bush is also a lovely addition to add color, fragrance, and butterflies. Climbing vines such as clematis, wisteria, or sweet peas will add bloom power and vertical interest. Whether you have a small space or just do not have the time to care for this type of garden, then a container garden will allow you to capture the essence of this look without a lot of fuss. Use a variety of pots that will offer bloom succession from spring to fall. Select one cottage garden plant to play the center role in each container and fill in with smaller plants. Do not be afraid to pack the plants in tight as you need a tight mix of color and texture to get that cottage garden look. Now you have the know-how to grow a classic charming cottage garden right outside your back door. For more information on the plants I discussed today, please visit us at gardeningknowhow.com and subscribe to our free weekly email newsletter with the link below. Thanks for watching and happy gardening!