How to Create your Own Cottage Garden

By AVS Fencing Supplies

If you’re looking to design and create a pretty and traditional cottage garden, there are a few things you should bear in mind.

Cottage gardens should appear as if rules have gone out of the window and your plants and flowers have been set free from restrictions and boundaries. Your garden should be alive with colour and the features that you have carefully chosen to decorate the area should be rustic and quaint.

Although informality and a bit of chaos is essential in your design, a well thought out plan of your garden layout is still very much required.

The good news is that there are several aspects to your design that you can easily get right. You just need the right materials.

• An absolute must in cottage garden design; the flowers you choose and the way you display them is very important. There is the option to go very traditional and choose ‘random planting’ as part of your design.

• To achieve this look, annuals need to be left to self-seed in between aggressive, spreading perennials.

Flower Power

• As a neater and less risky option however, you could instead opt for a ‘grouped’ look by arranging your plants in a particular way.

• This is done by placing your tallest plants at the back and displaying the shortest ones at the front in order to create a more bordered appearance.

• When it comes to which flowers to choose for your cottage garden, old-fashioned plants are your best bet. Cosmos, foxglove, peony, pansy, bleeding heart and hollyhock will all do the job perfectly well.

• Climbing plants such as roses, honeysuckle, jasmine and sweet peas will all make an impact when grown on attractive looking trellis.

• With garden furniture and accessories, anything contemporary should be avoided. A comfy wicker seat or a wooden arbour will look great and serve as a practical solution for entertaining guests or just relaxing in your garden.

• Pergolas are also handy for showcasing traditional plants.

The Rustic Look

• Vintage accessories such as old watering cans can be used to create your rustic look and don’t worry about matching everything with your furniture.

• The clashing of textures and materials will strip away any feeling of newness.

• A cottage garden is not complete without the charming look of picket fencing and gates. Otherwise known as palisade fencing and gates, they are not only a practical requirement but a decorative feature too.

• You can really bring everything together by opting for this traditional style to border your garden with.

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