Cottage Gardening - The Art of Chaos

Welcome to the Member Ideas area! This community feature is where our members can post their own ideas. These posts are unedited and not necessarily endorsed by the National Gardening Association.
Posted by @threegardeners on
There is no secret to having a beautiful Cottage Garden. The main "rule" is to simply let the plants decide what they want to do. Here are some visual hints meant to inspire you.

A cottage garden might be difficult for well organized people who like everything in its proper place. I can't help it! I like my gardens in chaos with plants climbing and leaning on each other and so much colour my eyes bounce from one to another and back again.

I'd like to show you how a cottage garden evolves over the course of a growing season. I hope it will inspire you and give you some new and exciting ideas.

Spring: The gardens are just waking up. My gardens are filled with Tulips, Daffodils, Phlox subulata (creeping phlox), and Myosotis sylvatica (forget-me-nots).

2011-07-18/threegardeners/b39bbf 2011-07-18/threegardeners/0059f2 2011-07-18/threegardeners/102768

They provide plenty of colour while the perennials are barely getting started. By the time the forget-me-nots are finished and gone to seed, everything else is big enough to take over. I just pull out the spent forget-me-nots (they barely have any roots), leaving plenty of seeds behind to start growing next year's plants. They will grow too; if you part the forest of perennials you can see baby forget-me-nots growing.

Next come the Digitalis (foxgloves), Lupinus (lupins), Aquilegia (columbine), Dianthus barbatus (sweet william), and early Papaver (poppies).

2011-07-18/threegardeners/3d3491 2011-07-18/threegardeners/06bbf0 2011-07-18/threegardeners/4062df

By the time they're winding down, all of the other perennials are kicking into gear.

Among them are Clematis, Potentilla fruiticosa bushes, Peonies, Weigelas, and Polygonatum (Solomon's seal).

2011-07-18/threegardeners/1e934a 2011-07-18/threegardeners/73fd96 2011-07-18/threegardeners/6a821f
2011-07-18/threegardeners/b56ecc 2011-07-18/threegardeners/81cc3f 2011-07-18/threegardeners/e05889

By the time July appears, everything is growing tall and we have Rudbeckia, Monarda (bee balm), Stachys byzantina (lamb's ears), Echinacea (cone flowers), Silene coronaria (rose campion), Coreopsis (tickseed) and a host of others all in colorful bloom and vying for attention.

2011-07-18/threegardeners/34482b 2011-07-18/threegardeners/556a5b 2011-07-18/threegardeners/b1b0ef
2011-07-18/threegardeners/a9d916 2011-07-18/threegardeners/fca5b9 2011-07-18/threegardeners/09dcf7

While all of this beauty is happening around me, I have a secret weapon stirring: annuals. Yes, your basic annuals. They've re-seeded themselves from last year and are growing in amongst the perennials. Cosmos, Shirley poppies, Nicotianna, Cleome, Asters and Delphinium (larkspur) are all quietly preparing to make an appearance. They will have their own show later in the summer when the perennials start winding down.

Meanwhile, the Hemerocallis (daylilies), Leucanthemum x superbum (shasta daisies) and tall Phlox are kicking in.

2011-07-18/threegardeners/d7d7de 2011-07-18/threegardeners/94977b 2011-07-18/threegardeners/573c57
2011-07-18/threegardeners/f1aeca 2011-07-18/threegardeners/569733 2011-07-18/threegardeners/b8577d
2011-07-18/threegardeners/eb7b41 2011-07-18/threegardeners/b9e539 2011-07-18/threegardeners/542b6d

I rarely move anything. Occasionally I'll thin things out. Rudbeckia is such a rampant grower and re-seeder, it will eventually take over an entire bed if I don't resort to thinning.

When I buy something new I roam around my garden, looking for a bare spot. Those spots appear where I lost a plant over the winter, but often I'll rip out something I have plenty of.  Tanacetum parthenium (feverfew) are good plants to have for this purpose. They're a good temporary filler for a bare spot until you find that perfect plant you've been looking for.

It's almost impossible to take a photo without getting another type of plant in the picture. That's what I love about cottage gardens; clematis growing in a potentilla bush, rose campions peeking through daylilies and feverfew. Everywhere you look, you see another surprise.

Later in the summer the Hibiscus moscheutos (perennial hibiscus) begin their show. The Helenium (helen's flowers) are beaming too, and somewhere in there you'll see Chrysanthemums waiting to produce that late fall blast of colour.

2011-07-18/threegardeners/3bb762 2011-07-18/threegardeners/eff6f4  2011-07-18/threegardeners/278e3c

I also allow quite a few native wildflowers to grow in my cottage garden: Rudbeckia hirta (brown-eyed susans), Asclepias syriaca (milkweed), Daucus carota (Queen Anne's lace), and Bellis perennis (daisies), to name a few.

Below are a few random garden shots. They show different combinations and long shots of the gardens. You can also see how views change from year to year.

2011-07-18/threegardeners/0f92b6 2011-07-18/threegardeners/eecfec 2011-07-18/threegardeners/d43563
2011-07-18/threegardeners/070dad 2011-07-18/threegardeners/3e0813 2011-07-18/threegardeners/1c830a
2011-07-18/threegardeners/de1acc 2011-07-18/threegardeners/38816b 2011-07-18/threegardeners/554499
2011-07-18/threegardeners/424ac7 2011-07-18/threegardeners/0deab4 2011-07-18/threegardeners/e31bb2
2011-07-18/threegardeners/e628c9 2011-07-18/threegardeners/c60cd1 2011-07-18/threegardeners/ddaf66

One word of caution: please bear in mind that my gardens are in Canada, zone 5, and some of the plants I've mentioned may very well be considered invasive in your area. A small bit of research via Google could help you avoid any unintentional planting of something you might eventually regret.

I hope I've given you some ideas on starting your very own cottage garden. Don't be afraid! The plants, and I've only mentioned a very, very few possibilities,  pretty much do all of the work after you've put them in the ground. You need not worry about height, spacing, colour combinations, or anything else for that matter. The only thing you might have to pay attention to is sun vs. shade;  living in the north as I do, it isn't something I'm very concerned about. I hope you have fun with your cottage garden!

 
Comments and Discussion
Thread Title Last Reply Replies
Looking for advice on perennials and annuals in shade and full sun area by kindof1ami Jul 18, 2019 6:03 PM 0
Beautiful garden by Bubbles May 1, 2014 5:35 PM 14
Love all the colors! by LarryR Jul 24, 2011 2:57 PM 2
Nice article! by Maridell Jul 21, 2011 3:02 PM 18

Explore More:

Member Login:

( No account? Join now! )

Today's site banner is by Zoia and is called "Volunteer"

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.