Do cottage gardens work in partial shade? Or even in full shade? That’s a question I get asked again and again. And guess what – there actually are plenty of wonderful flowers and plants that bloom even in a garden that’s on the shadier side. Photo: Syl Gervais You may remember that I had a vole infestation a while ago? Thanks to those wily critters, I had to completely redesign one of my flower beds and realised (a little perplexedly, I admit…) that it had meanwhile turned from full sun to partial shade/full shade. Note to self, Mrs Stiller: shrubs, trees and bushes GROW!). So I spent hours ..read more

What would it be like to enjoy a magical garden, filled to the brim with flowers but without having to constantly worry about watering? In times of climate change, with hot, dry summers, that’s a conundrum worth thinking about. Photo: Syl Gervais Whenever I’m asked if I spend my early summer mornings roaming the flower beds, armed with watering can and hose, my simple and honest answer is "Nope". I only water pots. The plants in my flower beds usually have to look after themselves, and many of them happily do just that. This is partly because I have chosen varieties that can cope with drier p ..read more

The world doesn't just need love, it also needs more sweet peas! At least, I think so. And it seems like it’s not just me. In England, there’s an entire society devoted to them: “National Sweet Pea Society”. Now that’s what I call dedication! Photo: Flora Press/Visions So let me tell you a little about these beauties. True to their name, sweet peas are closely related to the vegetables we see on our plates. Don’t let that stray your imagination to a plate full of bright green ‘balls’ (or if you’re in the UK: Fish & Chips and mushy peas). This version is much prettier and smells divine. Ju ..read more

It’s that strange in-between time of year where summer is not quite ready to say goodbye yet and fall is slowly starting to sneak in. Sunshine and t-shirts one day, gray clouds and thick jumpers the next. The garden is glowing while it makes one last big push before winding down for winter. The most beautiful colors everywhere I turn, from glorious dahlias to asters, Japanese anemones, the last of the roses and plenty of cosmos. I love the changing seasons and, after a long hot summer, the thought of tea, thick socks and snuggling up on the sofa is quite appealing. On those gloomy days, it fe ..read more

What an utterly lovely new flower pot: beautifully clean, orange, smooth – and sterile. Is that really what we want in a cottage garden? That'll be a hard 'No'. What we're looking for are items with soul that tell stories instead of looking all "shiny & new". Especially with flower pots though, I'm often required to switch over to brand-new models. I need too many to be able find enough combing through flea markets. So I buy new ones and then they just sit there as I wait, season after season, for that patina I love so much to appear. Merriam-Webster defines patina (plural patinas or pati ..read more

So, here’s a perfect example that you never stop learning in life – and the garden. Last year was the first time I stumbled across Hardy Annuals, also called Cool Flowers. It’s a concept that’s little known here in Germany, even though nature shows us how it's done every year. Sweet Pea "Hi Scent" And the best thing? Right NOW, when we’re lovingly looking at the last of our summer blooms and longing for spring, when we can start our annual seedling Kindergartens all over again – THAT’S when the time to sow Cool Flowers is just right. So, who are you, Hardy Annuals? Hardy Annuals (often abbrev ..read more

Who needs early bloomers when you look out the window right now? That's what you would have heard me say last week. Up until then, our world wasn't the muddy sludgy brown mess it is right now, left behind by melted snow. Instead, it was swaddled in a thick and beautiful white blanket. Every noise muffled and the (few) persistent colours popping brilliantly against their white canvas. At least, that's how it was down here in the South of Germany. Of course, things were even better in the good old days. Back then – as ancient myth has it – winters were ‘proper’ winters, with snow that didn’t me ..read more

I’ll never quite understand the purpose of slugs and snails. What was evolution thinking! The gastronomically-savvy French probably have some kind of garlic and parsley soaked answer for snails, but what about slugs then? On a side note: the marvelous Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall of River Cottage fame really did go all out and, with an enormous amount of patience and creativity, bravely attempted to transform slugs into a delicacy. It didn’t work. The Burgundy snail Even the fact that hedgehogs and runner ducks are fond of them only mollifies me oh so fleetingly and doesn’t help me get over th ..read more

If you're looking for flowers that will bring you joy all summer long, are easy to grow and turn your garden into a sea of blooms, it’s time to take a closer look at cosmos. Cosmos are the perfect flower for beginners, they're easy to grow and look after. They bloom in abundance from May (if they've had time to germinate indoors beforehand) through to October, are heavenly as cut flowers and, in a nutshell, just make me oh so very happy. Just a little bit of their story: cosmos found their way to our shores around 200 years ago, all the way from South America. Their name derives from the Gree ..read more

Bright sunshine, beach weather and long balmy nights sitting outside – it's a summer right out of a picture book. As lovely as it all is though, there's just one thing missing: water. Prolonged (extremely) dry spells create an enormous amount of extra work for gardeners and farmers. For the latter, it can threaten their livelihood when crops suffer. Photo: Janina Laszlo It has – phew – rained a little here from time to time. For me, that's sufficient because I brazenly claim that I don't really water my garden (except for pots and anything freshly-planted, of course) and that I've taught my p ..read more