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Cottage Garden Border

stephenjrobinsonstephenjrobinson Posts: 3
in Plants
I’m about to remove an old conifer hedge which will leave me a 28 metre long x  1.3 metre wide space to fill . I’m  completely confused on which planting combinations I could use that would work and provide the best results in terms of appearance, colour and flowering periods etc   . Could anyone suggest where I could  get help/ guidance  in building a planting schedule for this new border area  ? . Any suggestions or advice  would be gratefully received. 

Posts

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    You need to take into account what direction it faces, how much sun it gets, the soil type and your local climate. The soil will need improving as the conifers will have sucked out all the nutrients.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • stephenjrobinsonstephenjrobinson Posts: 3
    Thanks  Jenny . The border area enjoys pretty much full sun with minimal late afternoon shade . I plan on  bringing in fresh top soil and will take your advice on additional soil improvement as well. We’re pretty close to the sea but I wouldn’t describe our  micro climate as coastal though . Thanks again . 
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    There's lots of choice of plants for full sun, so you could start by thinking about what colours, shapes etc you like. With 28m length you could do different sections in different colours, look up Gertrude Jekyll who was famous for that kind of thing.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • newbie77newbie77 Posts: 1,838
    Put in some evergreens in between cottage garden plants so it doesnt look all bare in winter.
    South West London
  • gjautosgjautos Posts: 429
    If you want a real cottage garden, dont forget you can mix edibles in amongst the flowers. Rhubarb, chives, soft fruits all look good in a cottage border. And let plants self seed, foxgloves, hollyhocks, nigellas, sunflowers. All look great when left to do their own thing a bit. Colour charts should go out of the window, and as a previous poster advised, use some evergreen or perhaps cornus that give winter interest.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    I would also add in some flowering or interesting foliage shrubs to give some height. 
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • stephenjrobinsonstephenjrobinson Posts: 3
    Thank you for advice it’s really appreciated  I’ll  certainly take it on board and now start to build a plan . 
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