My Annual Flower Show

"The quintessence of the cottage garden is an abundance of colour and a jumble of scents.  The cottage flower garden is crowded with flowering plants, jostling one on top of another.  There are practical reasons for such dense planting,  Firstly, the leaves form a protective screen so that weeds have little chance of germinating and, if weeds do emerge, the dense canopy cuts out the light they need to survive.  In other words, the plants act as a ground cover." (Christopher Lloyd - The Cottage Garden)

Every year I sow lots of different annuals for the front garden - some self-seeders pop up too and dominate the beds for a while, aquilegia and sweet rocket in the spring, nasturtiums in late summer, but on the whole I dictate what goes in the borders.  Some years my plans work out better than others, but I do get a colourful display no matter what. 

"Cottage gardens are rarely filled with just one type of plant - they usually contain a wide mixture, begged or borrowed from other gardens and gardeners.  A variety of plants help to keep the beds free from diseases and pests as they have little chance of finding a sufficient number of hosts to become established."

I don't have a specific colour scheme necessarily but generally the border by the front fence tends to be mainly different shades of pink and the border that curves in front of the bay window, hotter colours.  I have a few permanent plants, like a hardy fuschia

and perennial sweet peas

but the gaps are filled with whatever plants have been successful from my spring sowings.  Cosmos and Lavatera are a couple of favourites

and Rudbeckias

I also have a permanent edging of lavender and rosemary in front of the curved bed which acts as a grey-green foil for all the bright colours.

"Perhaps the most important aspect of this jumble of plants that we call a cottage flower garden is that it is incredibly attractive.  In conventional flower borders, the plants are arranged in drifts for a calming effect.  The opposite is true of the cottage flower garden.  Random plants occur because as a gap appears either the gardener fills it with a favourite plant or nature takes a hand and self-sows a plant.  In either case, a cottage garden looks all the better for it.  Mother Nature has an uncanny way of self-sowing two colours together that no gardener would attempt, which results in stunning combinations."

I have a secret that I will share with you regarding gaps in the borders.  To give an appearance of an abundant border I sometimes cheat!  Shock horror!   Invariably there isn't enough room to dig a decent sized hole when a gap is evident - so I use perennial plants in black pots and place them in the gaps instead of trying to plant in the soil.  The black pots become invisible amongst all the foliage of the other plants surrounding it - and bingo - a full border.  Then when the annuals have all succumbed to the first frosts I can plant them out  in their permanent positions.

This Leucanthemum (or Marguerite as we used to call them) is still in its pot as is one of the Rudbeckias - I find it a perfect solution for a gappy border.

"One final point to remember when planning your perfect cottage flower garden is to avoid a rigid plan.  It is much better to allow a degree of flexibility that permits the exuberance of such a garden to flow and allows Mother Nature to give a helping hand.  Push plants in wherever there is a gap and if it looks right, do not worry to much about the 'rules'."