Creating Your Own Perfect English Garden

Have you ever wandered around the gardens of a stately home. Or sat in the garden of a pretty country cottage and wished it belonged to you? Of course, most of us have small gardens that feel a bit more limited in terms of what you can do with it. But you can still take some of the ideas you see in those classic or cottage gardens and apply it to your space.

Restyle your plain decking and sheds

Many of us have garden decking, which is great for summer eating, drinking and socialising. But it doesn’t always look so pretty or blend in with the rest of the outside space. However, you can give decking an English garden makeover.

Firstly, you need to soften the decking with lots of planting from traditional cottage garden flowers or plants. These can be planted in pots or in borders around the edges of your decked area. Then, it’s time to makeover your decking furniture with a bit of styling. Gingham tablecloths, cut flowers and lots of cushions and throws with floral patterns should work a treat.

If you’ve got an ugly shed, you can apply similar tricks to restyle that too. Lighten it up with exterior wood paint in traditional colours such as sage green. And add some flower boxes to make it more appealing. Or perhaps grow some climbing roses on a trellis around the shed door. 

Add some classical garden features

If you’re a fan of those well laid out gardens that are so characteristic of our stately homes and castles, you can steal a few ideas without needing acres of land. Classic stone urns make great planters, so why not place a pair in your garden? Copies of the real thing can often be found at garden centres and reclamation yards, along with classically styled statues if you fancy adding a bit more decoration.

Of course, you need to make sure you don’t overdo it. If your garden is very small, why not create a winding stone path that leads through your flower beds to a single urn or small statue?

Alternatively, you could go for a symmetrical planting pattern to mimic those grand gardens, but on a much smaller scale. Set out your raised beds or borders into a simple geometric design or clip your hedges, shrubs and trees into neat shapes to mimic those in formal gardens.