Useful perennials

A cottage garden

Historically, the space around cottages had to be used to the full – so it was filled with plants.  Mainly plants for food were the focus, but plants for a host of other uses were also used. They included a lot of perennials, such as herbs, large leaf vegetables (sorrel, rhubarb) and roses. There were often also dye-producing plants (to colour wool). A cottage garden is a real plant garden and a cottage border is excellent for harvesting cut flowers and herbs.

The old-fashioned plants from cottage gardens of the past form the bases for a border with that feel. Perennials and annual and biannual herbs are now often mixed with bulb and tuber crops, shrubs and climbers, since such a garden or border is aimed more at decorative value. The planting needs to be planned very carefully so that there is something flowering throughout the year. There is no problem with it looking a bit messy.

A number of perennials self-sow easily. You can find them anywhere in the garden, which means that the garden looks different every year.

These ‘garden wanderers’ include:

Alchemilla
Aquilegia
Campanula carpatica
Campanula persicifolia
Corydalis
Dianthus deltoides
Lupinus
Lychnis
Malva
Prunella
Tradescantia

Perennials which attract butterflies include:

Sweet violet (Viola odorata)
Bugle (Ajuga reptans)
Forget-me-not (Myosotis spec.)
Pincushion flower (Scabiosa spec.)
Evening primrose (Oenothera)
Wild thyme (Thymus serpyllum)
Field scabious (Knautia arvensis)
Verbena (Verbena bonariensis)
Mint (Mentha spec)
Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)
Sedum (Sedum telephium)
Knapweed (Centaurea)
Marjoram (Origanum 'Nymphenburg')
Musk mallow (Malva moschata)
Purple Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum 'Atropurpureum')