As I further try to clarify my vision for my gardens, I am drawn to the images of cottage gardens – the seemingly natural mix of plants filling the gardens, simple pathways meandering through the mix of colours, shapes, textures, and sizes.
I downloaded the free ebook “The Bood of the Cottage Garden” by Charles Thonger. With in the first few pages I found this quote:
The taint of money is everywhere—tons of soil removed from one spot to another; terraces and balustrades glittering with newness ; artificial lakes on elevated ground; fountains playing ; exotics, which in winter must be sheltered in heated structures, dotting the lawns and stairways. There is no air of peace or rest in such gardens. An army of men is constantly at work, sweeping, trimming, clipping, tidying—an endless round of wearisome and profitless labour. We forget the garden in the stupendous prospect of the wages bill. How different is the cottage garden, whose very existence, since poverty not affluence called it into being, is due to a need in humble minds for its pleasant companionship. Its paths are moss-grown, innocent of the immaculate coatings of gravel dear to the owners of carriage drives and serpentine walks. Roses and creepers drape themselves in natural ways on porch and eaves, unvisited by a watchful assistant with his bag of nails and cloth shreds. ” Bedding out ” is unknown ; instead, the borders are filled with a brave company of hardy plants which greet the seasons as Nature intended. As summer wanes, the ground is littered thick with fallen leaves and petals, crimson, amber, chestnut, and gold. No one troubles toremove them ; they drop to earth to nourish the plants which gave them life. Here in truth is realised, more closely perhaps than elsewhere, something of that subtle mystery without which the love of gardens could never have survived so long as it has done
Doesn’t that sound lovely, inviting, and “MsDebbie-ish”??
(more to come as I read along, I’m sure)
-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)
6 comments so far
MsDebbieP
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posted 131 days ago
“At first sight, everything appears to be hopelessly mixed—paths of varying widths, beds unequally proportioned, plants straying from their legitimate quarters and establishing themselves wherever they can secure convenient roothold. Clearly, such a garden was not secured by the aid of working drawings, measuring rods or instruments for ensuring correct levels. And yet, on looking more closely, we shall find that here is no haphazard jumble, but on the contrary a direct acceptance of certain conditions, the realisation of which has been instrumental in procuring so excellent a result.”
-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)
mmh
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posted 131 days ago
The cottage garden sounds lovely, especially in Charles thonger’s words. I must get his book!
Growing hardy plants in beds that are acclimated to the natural micro-climate of the territory make life a lot less complicated. The work is never really “done” but you don’t have to fight Mother Nature as much to make things grow. I have a dozen various sized beds around my old house and each has their own micro-climate that dictates what can grow and survive in them. If I am dilligent and plant accordingly, I don’t have to fuss as much and my success rate flourishes! After years of trying to grow precious plants in the wrong spots and wasting my time, effort and money, I finally figured this one out and now I even have several variety of ferns flourishing and they need to be thinned.
-- A weed is a plant that is growing where it was not purposefully placed by human hands.
MsDebbieP
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posted 131 days ago
re: the book—“free” is nice!
As you have pointed out, the cottage gardening isn’t as carefree as it seems, there is a lot of observing involved, finding which plants are most hardiest for which locations and meshing the plants in a way that create that cottage garden feel
-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)
MsDebbieP
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posted 131 days ago
Inspirations (Google Search LINK)
-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)
OttoH
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hardiness zone 9
posted 131 days ago
Sounds great Debbie, i look forward to seeing what comes of your plans.
-- My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~H. Fred Ale
Radicalfarmergal
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posted 130 days ago
I appreciate the images his passage evokes. Thank you, Debbie.
-- "To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves." M. Gandhi