Welcome to the fifth issue of the Country Living Garden Club spring series. In this issue, we’re talking about all things English-style gardens.
Hello Fellow Gardeners!
England has a long and storied gardening history, from the formal Tudor and Jacobean gardens filled with hedges and mazes to the sweeping naturalistic landscapes designed by Capability Brown. Today, though, I’m focusing on two of my favorites: naturalistic meadow gardens and cottage gardens.
Cottage gardens are densely planted and informal, often featuring winding paths, flowering vines, and bright blooms mixed with herbs and vegetables. Naturalistic meadow gardens, meanwhile, feel more open and free-flowing, with grasses and flowers that attract wildlife and create a softer, more natural look.
In this issue, I chat with a garden designer about how to create a meadow garden, celebrate community gardens (or “allotments,” as the Brits say), and share some beautiful new rose varieties—a cottage-garden classic.
—Charlyne Mattox
Food & Crafts Director, Country Living
P.S. Have questions or topics you’d like me to cover? Shoot me an email at cmattox@hearst.com.
Twirl It Up: Plant a Climbing Rose
An archway covered with spectacular climbing roses is a signature feature of an English cottage garden. The arch adds structure and creates a beautiful focal point, while the roses bring color, nostalgia, and often a sweet fragrance that pollinators love. One of my favorite varieties is the Peggy Martin rose. It’s famously tough, with a fascinating history tied to Hurricane Katrina.
Q&A: How to Create a Meadow Garden
After a childhood spent romping through the woods of Alabama, garden designer Molly Hendry of Roots & Ramblings traveled throughout the U.K., working in public gardens as the Royal Horticultural Society Interchange Fellow. I recently sat down with her to chat about naturalistic gardens—specifically meadow gardens—which have been gaining momentum in England in recent years. Below is just a little of what she shared, but you can find more of our conversation here.
Q. What defines naturalistic garden design?
A. A naturalistic planting takes a wild reference point, like a meadow, and uses it as inspiration in a garden setting. However, these designs are not a copy-and-paste version of what you would find in the wild! Instead, they take the qualities (textures, colors, seasonal themes, and diversity) and distill and amplify them to create the effects that wild places give us.
Q. What are some native plants that can be used to create a meadow garden?
A. Meadows are a type of grassland, so the backbone of any meadow garden is grasses. I love to use purple lovegrass, ‘White Cloud’ muhly grass, and switchgrasses. Wildflowers such as ‘Blackbeard’ penstemon, coneflowers, rudbeckia, bee balm, Joe-Pye weed, ‘Jeana’ phlox, agastache, and asters then add a rolling chorus of blooms throughout the growing season.
Add to Cart: English Garden-Inspired Finds I’m Loving Right Now
Here are three things I’m adding to my cart this week:
A BritBox Subscription: Okay, this one might seem a little strange, but when it’s too hot to get out in the garden, I get my gardening fix by watching the long-running BBC television series Gardeners’ World on BritBox.
Iron Gardening Bench: Our house sits high on a hill, and this weathered iron bench will be perfectly situated along one side of our small front yard, where I can keep an eye on my bird feeder and watch the sun set behind my neighbors’ huge oak trees.
Cast-Iron Owl: I’m excited to nestle this cute cast-iron owl among my plants and watch it patina over time, adding a little fairy-garden vibe. Maybe I’ll get a garden gnome next!
New Blooms to Know: Roses
I currently don’t have any roses in my garden, so I’m excited to add one of these new varieties!
I love the pale-yellow color and the many, many petals on this shrub rose. It stays relatively small (up to 4 by 4 feet), so it’s perfect for a container. Find more ideas for container gardens in this story.
I can’t help but hear Queen’s iconic ’80s theme song when I see the name of this rose. I love its showy yellow center, which attracts plenty of bees. It also blooms in its first season, making it perfect for anyone who needs instant gratification. Learn how to incorporate roses into your garden.
I love purple in the garden, and the light lilac blooms on this new climbing rose are just perfection. It will grow up and over a trellis, adding so much charm to a cottage garden, but it also blooms on new wood if you prefer to maintain it as a shrub. Learn all about planting roses here.
Dig In: Join a Community Garden
Allotments—small, rented garden plots where people grow their own flowers and vegetables—are hugely popular throughout the U.K. There’s something wonderfully communal about them, with neighbors swapping seeds, sharing advice, and comparing tomatoes over the fence. To find a similar community garden near you, check out the American Community Gardening Association’s (ACGA) interactive map, which features hundreds of community gardens across North America.
Garden to Glass: Raspberry Vodka Sour
Bright, citrusy, and bursting with fresh berry flavor, this cocktail feels both elegant and easygoing—much like a meadow or cottage garden. Fresh raspberries and lemon juice give it vibrant tartness, while smooth vodka and a touch of simple syrup keep every sip perfectly balanced.
To Make: Muddle 6 fresh raspberries and ½ to ¾ oz. simple syrup in a cocktail shaker until the raspberries are broken up. Add 2 oz. vodka, 1 oz. fresh lemon juice, and ice, then shake until chilled, 15 to 20 seconds. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a coupe or cocktail glass and garnish with a raspberry on a cocktail pick.
