Romantic cottage gardens only look difficult to achieve. Unlike other landscaping styles, cottage gardens don’t follow strict rules—they’re meant to be whimsical, free-flowing, and inviting. You don’t need a big yard, and you don’t even need a cottage. You just need to get creative. The beauty comes from mixing and matching a wide variety of ornamental plants with different colors, shapes, and textures. Because of their casual-yet-cared-for style, cottage gardens are pretty easy to pull off. (The Grumpy Gardener says so himself!) For a lush garden that looks like it belongs in the English countryside, pack a plethora of vibrant flowers into beds and borders. Read on for 13 of the best plants for a charming cottage garden.
Delphiniums
Striking delphiniums don’t love the South’s long, hot, and humid summers, but we love them too much not to plant them in our gardens. The New Southern Living Garden Book suggests growing these flowers as annuals instead. Try planting Delphinium exaltatum, also known as tall larkspur. This selection shows off four- to six-foot-tall blue spikes during the summer.
For tall larkspur:
Zones: USDA 4-7
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: moderate
English lavender
Fragrant English lavender is a hardy species that usually blooms in early to mid-summer. For successful growing in the South, plant in gravelly, fast-draining soil with few nutrients and don’t fertilize.
Zones: USDA 5-9
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: moderate
Foxgloves
Bring hummingbirds to the garden with foxgloves. The New Southern Living Garden Book describes them as tall plants that «form low foliage clumps topped by spikes of tubular flowers shaped like fingertips of a glove; colors include purple, yellow, white, pastels.» They’re loved for their height and color. (Note: All parts of foxgloves are poisonous if ingested.)
Zones: USDA 4-9
Exposure: light shade
Water: regular
Hollyhocks
Grow colorful hollyhocks against a fence or in the back of a border plot. They’re known for their large, funnel-shaped summer flowers, which can bloom in vibrant shades of white, pink, rose, red, purple, yellow, or apricot.
Zones: USDA 2-10
Exposure: full sun
Water: regular to occasionally dry
Bearded Iris
According to The Grumpy Gardener, bearded irises are the perfect perennial. Iris can handle the heat, cold weather, and drought all while producing fragrant flowers every spring. Stems can grow two to four feet tall. Give them plenty of sun and plant in well-drained soil.
Zones: USDA 3-10
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: well-drained to dry
Snapdragons
Spiky snapdragons grow well in border gardens throughout the South. Look for peak blooms in spring and early summer in the Middle and Upper South; they’ll blossom in winter and spring in the Lower, Coastal, and Tropical South. Snaps also make great cut flowers for seasonal arrangements.
Zones: USDA 7-10
Exposure: full sun
Water: occasionally dry
Sweet Peas
«Few flowers are better suited to the cottage garden than beloved, old-fashioned sweet peas,» says The New Southern Living Garden Book. These perfumy flowers bloom in spring and summer. Use in cut arrangements.
Zones: USDA 2-10
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: evenly moist
Phlox
Phlox plants shows off vibrant clusters of dainty blooms. Plant tall selections along a border and dwarf selections in a rock garden. They grow well in ordinary garden soil with regular moisture.
Zones: USDA 3-9
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: regular
Coneflowers
Long-stemmed coneflowers are a smart pick for Southern gardens; they love the sun and can tolerate drought. Plant them in spring for blooms all summer long (deadhead spent flowers to lengthen their blooming season). Coneflowers grow best in well-drained soil.
Zones: varies by species
Exposure: full sun to part shade
Water: moderate to regular
Roses
Pile on the charm with sweet-smelling roses. There are so many different kinds of this age-old flower to choose from: climbing roses to embellish an arbor, reblooming shrubs along the fence, or smaller selections in a container.
Zones: USDA 5-11
Exposure: full sun
Water: frequent
Butterfly Bush
Bring butterflies to your garden with this popular shrub, which produces vibrant ornamental flowers in summer. Give butterfly bush full sun and fertile, moist, well-drained soil.
Zones: varies by species
Exposure: full sun or light shade
Water: moderate to regular
Dianthus
Among dianthus’s over 300 species include favorites such as Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus) and carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus). Plant Sweet Williams in border plots; this vigorous grower produces clusters of white, pink, rose, red, purple, and multi-colored flowers with rich-green leaves. Florists» carnations are sought-after cut flowers, but they can also be grown in borders.
Zones: USDA 4-9
Exposure: full sun
Water: moderate to regular
Hydrangeas
No Southern gardener can go wrong with hydrangeas. Bring bold color to your yard with vibrant French hydrangeas, or add curb appeal with the white conical blooms of the popular «Limelight» panicle hydrangea. Whichever selection you choose, be sure to plant in a spot that gets morning sun and afternoon shade.
Zones: USDA 3-9
Exposure: partial shade
Water: moderate to regular