Amateur Gardening – 13 July 2019

50 AMATEUR GARDENING 13 JULY 2019

Cottage gardening is brought up to date in this sloping garden, says Sue Bradley

E

DIBLE crops combined with

ornamental borders is the

hallmark of the traditional

cottage garden, but Andy and

Sue Green have brought theirs up to

date with subtle 21st century additions.

Triangular raised beds, weatherproof

outdoor seating, a greenhouse and a

rill that uses a ‘flowform’ sculpture to

manipulate the direction of the water

are just some of the modern touches

they have brought to their space.

Nevertheless, the garden, in Bussage,

near Stroud, Gloucestershire, remains

stylistically in keeping with their

18th-century stone cottage.

“When we came here 11 years ago,

we gave the garden a couple of years to

see what came up,” explains Sue.

“The stone terracing at the top was

already in place and while it’s slightly

higgledy-piggledy, we’ve tried to work

with it. However, we didn’t try to restore

the large 1960s waterfall. We also

inherited a pair of yew trees, after

which the cottage takes its name.”

The lawn had to go

One thing that did have to go was a

lawn at the top of the terracing, which

was replaced with a productive fruit

area and cutting garden, the latter

providing Sue with plenty of blooms

for flower arrangements.

“We quickly decided that lugging a

lawnmower up to the top of the garden

wasn’t for us,” laughs Andy.

The Greens had a head start when it

came to their collection of apple trees,

Choose shrubs and perennials for their

attractive foliage as well as for their

flowers. Here, a berberis contrasts

beautifully with the long and thin

leaves of crocosmia

Ideas for gorgeous gardens

Get lookthe

Combining old and new

“Triangular raised

beds provide a

good harvest”

Photography by Peter Chatterton