The quintessential image of a cottage garden often conjures visions of a sprawling rural idyll, perhaps nestled in the Cotswolds, awash with the vibrant hues and heady scents of peonies, roses, lupins, and delphiniums basking in the summer sun. However, this charming aesthetic is far from exclusive to expansive country estates, according to gardening expert Joff Elphick.
Elphick, co-author of the new book A Year In A Cottage Garden, explains that the essence of this style can be distilled into even the most compact of spaces. "When we think of cottage gardens we do often think of small spaces which are quite heavily planted but with a loose hand," he says.
