Cottage-Style Landscapes and Gardens
Cottage gardens feature an abundance of color, freestyle form and fun artwork. Get ideas and inspiration for creating your own beautifully casual cottage garden.
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Size Does Not Matter
This yard may be small, but the soaring, colorful perennials take it to lofty heights.
Bird Haven
This garden space invites birds to come and enjoy the lush greenery and flowering perennials in this cottage garden.
Embrace a Hillside
This pathway softly winds up to the house thanks to lush plantings spilling and cascading over the boulder staircase. Tip: No matter the scope of the project, always maximize the space by embellishing its existing character, like grade changes.
A Quiet Conversation
This backyard garden offers a peaceful spot to enjoy a beautiful garden view from the pair of wooden Adirondack chairs.
A Spot for Entertaining
The covered lounge area includes cove lighting so that the spot can be enjoyed well into the evening. Red cushioned chairs offer a comfortable place to rest and enjoy company.
Pine Dining
The shade of a pine tree is converted into an inviting dining spot. There is an herb garden located just beyond in case the meal needs a little extra spice.
Soften the Hardscape
No other plant can add movement and catch the light like ornamental grasses and flowering herbs. They can soften yet enhance masonry elements with their airy form and uniquely capture and filter the sun's rays. Tip: Be sure to place them where they can catch the light, which will shine through their foliage and flower heads, making them glow and shimmer in the breezes.
Wisteria Pergola
This large patio provides shade to make it a great place for entertaining. The greenery in the wisteria turn this structure into a fairytale setting.
Colorful Flowers
Add a stunning combination of multiple blooming flowers, and climbing plants for pops of color throughout the cottage garden.
Sculpture Garden
Whimsical art is prevalent in cottage-style gardening. Buddha is placed among pink and blue hydrangeas.
Well-Planned Water Feature
A mix of perennials and shrubs creates texture, color, and scent in this informal garden designed for strolling and casual afternoon chats. Make full use of natural slopes to create a custom waterfall and pond. Flowers color the setting and make it feel even more enchanting.
Tranquil Koi Pond
A water feature adds an elegant touch to any garden. Water is heard as it gently pours from a hand-chiseled stone rill into an elongated pool. Filled with koi and water lilies in bloom, the water reflects the sky above, surrounding trees and plants.
Be Informal
The beauty of a cottage garden is in its informality. To get this look, avoid planting in straight lines of defined paths. Skip the pruning! Let the plants cascade and weave through each other.
Well-Defined Paths
Lovely stone paths lead you through this garden and create a natural looking pathway.
Go Vertical
Add layer and height to your cottage garden with the aid of trellises and obelisks. A trellis covered in jasmine creates a beautiful juxtaposition to the gate's wrought iron. Better still, the plant infuses this outdoor space with natural fragrance.
Old-Fashion Flowers
Cottage gardens are filled with old-fashion flower varieties like hollyhock, peony, larkspur, pansies, cosmos, foxglove, snapdragon, bachelor's button, and columbine.
Vintage Upcycled Planters
Add some whimsical charm to your cottage garden with vintage or upcycled planters. Think outside the box when it comes to planters. Use old birdhouses, watering cans, wood crates, and even old boots.
Welcoming Entrance
A welcome reception ensues upon the opening of these large gates into this charming South Carolina courtyard garden.

Photo By: Joan Grabel