Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Cottage Garden Ideas

My favorite type of flowering garden is the cottage garden. These cottage garden ideas will inspire you to add color and the fun more relaxed style of the cottage garden to your home.

Cottage gardens are more relaxed than a formal garden. I prefer this method as I can just tuck plants in together and enjoy the mass of color a beautiful cottage garden provides.

Cambria pines lodge, cottage flowers


You think of color when you visualize a cottage garden. Color does not have to be confined to flowers and shrubs. Flowering trees add a perfect blast of color. A country cottage garden is a perfect way to display rusty garden tools and art. The mix of texture is ideal in cottage garden design.

rusty garden art, flowering tree

You can add edibles to your cottage garden have more purpose to your garden. Vegetables mixed with flowers draws bees and other pollinators for a bigger harvest.

edible gardening

Don't have a yard and still want to have a cottage garden? Cottage garden container ideas abound. I have this little spot off our patio and in spring grow lots of colorful flowers in containers. In the summer when it is hard to grow container flowers in Southern California, the pots are moved and I grow squash and cucumbers up the trellis.

container cottage garden, nasturtium

Flowering vines such as this wisteria are quintessential cottage garden plants. Arbors or a trellis provide visual interest. A cottage garden blog is a feast for the eyes. I love the peace a quaint cottage garden provides. Truly my happy place.

wisteria, old bird house



wisteria on arbor

Elements Of Cottage Garden Design:


1. Grow old fashioned flowers like hollyhocks and delphiniums.

2. Add cozy touches such as furniture and tables set in comfy settings.

3. Add fencing and arbors for visual interest.

4. Use curving pathways that invite the visitor to see what is around the next turn.

5. Add vintage touches. Use old items in creative ways like an old rusty shovel as a handle for a garden     shed or gate.

9 comments:

  1. Oh, I agree. Cottage gardens are the best!
    Brenda

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  2. Elaine, this is so pretty! I saw delphiniums at the nursery the other day. I didn't realize they are so big and beautiful. :)

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  3. Just a little bit wild and oh so colourful.
    Merle................

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  4. Me too Elaine. I love the willy nilly style of an English Garden!
    xo Kris

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  5. Loving the cottage picture. We did have some delphiniums at one time.

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  6. I love a cottage garden and that is how I have been trying to make mine look. It is every evolving and I find new plants and move others to places where they may do better.

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  7. Thanks for that! Beautiful!great ideas!

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  8. Maybe this style of garden appeals to me because I am so organized in the house. This free-flowing type of gardening is so freeing. Love that beautiful wisteria! Pinned!

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