Cottage Gardens

A celebration of a beloved and uniquely British garden style. The cottage garden's abundant, informal style is rooted in Victorian dreams of a perfect country life. But it has found new expressions from the Arts & Crafts movement to the present day. This book showcases a selection of National Trust cottage gardens, famous and obscure, including writer Thomas Hardy’s cottage in Dorset; the flower-filled cottage garden created at Sissinghurst, Kent, by Vita Sackville-West and harold Nicolson; the Tudor manor Cothele in Cornwall, Beatrix Potter's Cumbrian home, Hill Top, and the picturesque Alfriston Clergy House in East Sussex. Cottage Gardens also features some of the most famous non-National Trust examples from around the country, including Kelmscott Manor, Dove Cottage and Eastgrove Cottage Garden. With practical advice on creating your own cottage garden, including key plants and techniques, this is a wonderful companion for all garden enthusiasts. With climbing roses, bright hollyhocks, pathways edged with honeysuckle, blossom-filled orchards and wildflower meadows, this is the perfect book to capture the idyllic British country garden.

“A practical and inspirational guide to a new style of planting.” —Country Homes & Interiors In this practical and inspirational guide, Greg Loades presents a new style of planting: a fusion between classic cottage style and the new perennial movement. Using real gardens as examples, The Modern Cottage Garden teaches gardeners how to combine the best of both styles—big, colorful blooms and striking grasses and native plants—into one beautiful space that requires little maintenance and has a long season of interest. Fresh planting ideas for containers, small gardens, and diverse climates present an exciting style that can shine anywhere.

Thanks to the extraordinary color photos and gardening wisdom in this book, the elegant intimacy of the English cottage garden is a practical possibility for amateur gardeners in diverse regions of the United States.

The instantly recognizable English cottage garden encapsulates that delightful mix of scented climbers, drifts of flowers inter-mingled with herbs and vegetables, fruit trees and traditional features. Much loved and copied throughout the world, it is uniquely individual. With no strict rules to adhere to, it is a garden style that is both informal and functional, celebrating fragrance, flowers and seasonal interest at its heart. The old cottage style of gardening, that blended planting to create a flowery yet productive plot within a small space, is still highly relevant and easily transferable to today's modern garden, whether it be a city courtyard or a large garden in the country. Appropriate for gardeners of every level of ability, The English Cottage Garden covers all aspects of designing a cottage-style garden; from choosing the right trees, climbers, shrubs and perennials to creating an authentic cottage feel to the planting It also covers the use of colour within the garden; how features can establish a framework and create focal points; and why companion planting is essential to this style. Illustrated throughout with a wealth of photographs showing gardens, planting combinations, colourful border schemes and individual flowers, this book is an essential read for anyone interested in the quintessential cottage garden.

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Filled with sumptuous color photographs and exquisite botanical illustrations, here is a rich visual presentation of a well-loved gardening style. But, it is also a practical guide for those who wish to create a cottage garden tailored to their specific climates and horticultural passions.

Discover design inspiration as a photographer and blogger details the story of her renovation of a 1940s cottage in the California countryside. A little, abandoned vacation house that could, set in the center of rolling fields and trees becomes the cottage home of her dreams. A French country–style cottage filled with original elements and an exquisite mix of rustic and refined. The years of renovation allowed Courtney to create a lifestyle that is fueled by inspiration and beauty, a touch of whimsy, and an abundance of everyday elegance. The journey has been shared on her popular blog French Country Cottage, and now, through the publication of her first book, her readers will experience a reveal of more of her home and property and the inspirations behind her beloved style. Courtney's inspiring photography reveals every nuance of her style and home including a muted color palette, old brassy door knobs, chippy paint, antiques, her greenhouse and garden, and an abundance of entertaining and holiday decorating style. Blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor and embracing well-worn as well loved, French Country Cottage is a style that celebrates simplicity, indulges in romance, cherishes pieces with history and believes a chandelier and fresh flowers belong in every room.

Cottage Gardens" visits the English origins of this increasingly popular style, and offers practical advice for getting started, specifics on regional variations, design tips, basic plant profiles, plus recommendations on structural details. 185 illustrations.