A cottage garden should ideally have winding paths, which in midsummer are only just visible between beds bursting with plants. These paths lead your eye to a focal point; this could be your house, an arbour or even a simple bench,’ recommends RHS horticulturalist Catherine Fairhall Lewis, who looks after the cottage garden at RHS Hyde Hall. For me, it is such a comfort to know that no matter what decision is made in government, you can't put the breaks on nature; leaves will always fall, flowers will always bloom. I hope that this period of time has made people open their eyes to the beauty around them." Loades believes that every space, big or small, has the potential to become a garden rich in nostalgia. Perhaps I'll look at my patio in London in a different way, after all. By the middle ages, around the time King Louis XIV built the formal gardens at Versailles, affluent people started growing gardens for pleasure rather than as a main source of food. From Tudor times until the Victorian era, cottage gardens were functional rather than decorative, with an emphasis on productive culinary and medicinal plants, and flowers to aid pollination filling any spaces in between.

For those with a big budget, try statement pergola ideas like this. A major step up from your average pergola, this structure features a remote-controlled roof system which can be rotated to protect from sun or increase ventilation whenever you need it. Good soil: As with all gardening, ensure the soil is good, rich in organic matter, and that the plants you choose suit your conditions and are good performers. Sow easy-to-grow long-lasting annuals and wildflowers, including calendula, cornflowers, nigella and biennial foxgloves, to fill any gaps. Over time self-seeding plants will pop up randomly in unexpected spots, giving an interwoven lightness and artfulness to the design.

Plant Combinations: Finding the Right Mix

The style began to change in the late 18th century, when members of the gentry romanticized rural cottage life and created their own cottage gardens with an abundant planting of flowers.

A cottage garden is as quintessentially British as cream teas, the Royal Family and a strange obsession with the weather. Few sights are more impressive in summer than a chocolate-box house surrounded by a space brimming with roses, perennials and flowering climbers.

Symmetry adds a layer of sophistication to the cottage garden. Trees or structures are great for this – if you are including a pergola or a trellis you can train scented roses or sweet peas over it for a whole other dimension. Consider arranging a seedling swap with friends, so you can share your home-grown wonders, and make your garden more diverse. Also learn how to take plant cuttings to multiply your collection of plants for no additional cost. The original cottage gardens were planted by British laborers who had little land and no time for flowers. They simply needed food for their family and herbs to treat illnesses so they planted vegetables, herbs, and fruit interspersed with a few flowers to ward off bugs. The combination of soft and riotous planting with formal clipped hedges and decorative topiary works as a design contrast.