Starting a Cottage Garden
Heirloom Perennials
The denizens of the cottage garden are usually of the heirloom variety, because this garden design was patched together from gifted plants, cuttings, collected seeds, pips and volunteer seedlings, which rarely come true from hybrids.
In spring it boasts a delightful mix of primroses, hyacinths, daffodils, bleeding hearts, beardtongues, peonies, columbines, wild geraniums and lily-of-the-valley, quickly followed by the copious greenery of the summer staples, which hide the wilted bulb foliage and allow it to die down in its own time.
Purple coneflowers, lady's mantle, speedwell, daisies, daylilies, dahlias, gladioli, coreopsis, delphiniums, phlox, pinks, lupines, foxgloves and bellflowers grace the borders all summer, complementing each other's flowering seasons, in a way that ensures something is always in bloom.
The season concludes with the Oriental lilies, obedient plants, Russian sage, yarrow, hardy mums, and asters, which endure until the first frost.
It is assumed a cottage garden will be basking in full sun, so her perennials are all sun lovers, and bloom abundantly all season long, suffusing the air with fragrance.
It should include a perennial vine, also fragrant, something like honeysuckle, wisteria, clematis or jasmine, to create a lovely backdrop against a wall or cover a trellis.
Last, the unspoken expectation is that every cottage garden must have at least one rose. To stay true to the nostalgic theme, pick an old variety, like Alba, Bourbon or Damask.
Flowering Herbs
Cottage gardens are meant to be beautiful, but also practical, and as such, they always have room for herbs.
Whether grown for their flowers, like chamomile, lavender, or calendulas, or for their fragrant foliage, like rosemary, basil, hyssop, marjoram, basil, mint and sage, herbs bring a charm and authenticity that hits just the right note for an old-fashioned cottage garden design.
Large aromatics like wormwood and valerian, ghostly and tall at the back of the border, or frayed Angelica, swaying its large umbels above the landscape, provide fragrance, scale, texture, and variety, an interesting backdrop for the perennial bloom, while blooming chives, low growing golden thyme or germander enchant you up-close at the front of the border, tucked between marigolds and pinks.
If you have the chance, try growing anise hyssop, which is related to neither anise, nor hyssop, but whose intense licorice scent suffuses the garden on hot summer afternoons, and whose purple-blue flowers look like a cool drink of water in the blazing sun, attracting hosts of butterflies.
Old Fashioned Annuals
To capture the nostalgic charm of a traditional cottage garden, be sure to incorporate annuals like heliotrope, sweet peas, stock, larkspur, nicotiana, mignonettes and pot marigolds.
Morning glory, moonflower, cypress, and Black Eyed Susan vines are great for disguising unsightly objects or enhancing fences and lampposts.