Cottage gardens never go out of style, and the rise of homesteading and “cottagecore” is leading to a resurgence of this charming and practical style.

Beloved for their informality, cottage gardens champion organic and unstructured spaces overflowing with textures and colors while welcoming self-sown plants and bulbs popping up and spreading on their own. Appearing casual, everything is done with great intent.

From humble origins in medieval England and Colonial America, this style arose as a practical approach—ornamentals and edibles intermingling and supporting each other—before being elevated by great garden designers Gertrude Jekyll, William Robinson, Vita Sackville-West, Margery Fish, and Rosemary Verey. Today, concerns about food traceability, reducing waste and chemical use, and supporting pollinators and wildlife have rekindled interest in cottage gardening.

Taking a 360-degree view, this book covers plant combinations, paths and walls, water features, keeping chickens or bees, and extending the season, as well as promoting traditional, organic practices such as composting, rain harvesting, and succession planting.

About The Author

Kathryn Bradley-Hole was Country Life’s gardens editor for eighteen years and also wrote the “Nature Notes” column. A fellow of The Linnean Society, she is author of The Naturally Beautiful Garden and English Gardens: From the Archives of Country Life Magazine. Marianne Majerus is an acclaimed garden photographer, having won numerous awards, and a founding member of the Professional Garden Photographers’ Association.