When gardeners put their gardens to bed in the fall, place fountains and container gardens in winter storage and bring in resin gnomes, fairies and wilderness creatures, they’re already thinking about the following year’s garden.

Dreams Can Come True

If you’ve always dreamed of creating a country garden, now is the time. There are really no rules for this type of garden. Country gardens reflect the gardener’s personality and creative sense. They’re informal gardens that can have a gazebo, park bench or English-themed statue as the focal point. Other English-themed focal points can be found in garden stores and nurseries. I once saw a miniature resin Big Ben that was battery operated and tolled out the time. Another one that caught my fancy was a resin rendition of an English manor. Look around and you will be surprised at what you can find.

Go Wild

Be exuberant and plan disorder for a country garden. Resist the urge to plant your flower selections in a straight row. Plant in clumps or drifts and if you have a favorite plant bunch or stagger it throughout the garden in groups of odd numbers; three or five work well. Do not plant things in pairs. Symmetry is only used in formal gardens.

In a country garden, plants should flow into one another, just as nature would plant them in the wild. To achieve this look you will need to plant thickly and close together, yet allowing space enough for plant species to thrive.

Plants for your Country Garden

The beauty of a country garden is in its depth. Begin by planting tall plants at the back of your garden. These include botlonia, black-eyed Susans, coneflowers, cosmos, delphiniums, ferns, foxgloves, hollyhocks, sunflowers and Veronica. As you move to the center of the garden, plant flowers of medium height, such as asters, bellflowers, columbine, coneflowers, coral bells, dahlias, daisies, larkspur, lavender, phlox and poppies. At the front of your garden shorter species of plants will give the garden lots of depth. Alyssum, baby’s breath, lily of the valley, lady’s mantle, pansies, petunias, violets and violas are great.

You may want to include a trellis or arbor as another focal point. Here, plant species such as cardinal vine, clematis, moonflowers, morning glories and trumpet vine can wind their way through the lattice, or meander up a wall. Bulbs that bloom in the early spring can make a beautiful splash of color; plant crocus, daffodils, hyacinth, lilies, narcissus, peacock orchids and tulips.

How and What to Plant

If your garden is circular or in the center of a clearing within a larger garden, start with the higher growing species in the center and work your way toward the edge, planting shorter species as you go.

It’s best not to use exotic or tropical plants in a country garden, as they are too flamboyant and take away from the country look. You want your plants to make a statement, but as part of a group, not individually. A country garden needs form and texture. Use a mix of annuals, bulbs, bi-annuals, climbers, iris and lilies. Bold statements can be made by the flowers and leaves of rudbekias, and daisies, which will compliment the colorful leaves of such plants as yarrow. Violas, also known as Johnny-jump-ups, can be planted so they poke up between the velvety green-gray leaves of lamb’s ears. Combine spiky cardinal flowers or red lobelia with plants that have rounded leaves. This makes for an interesting visual and will act as a great conversation piece.

Color

A country garden should include a riot of color. Bring in every hue of the rainbow and those shades beyond. Any color is appropriate, but avoid planting colors that will clash next to one another. Harmonize color by moving whites into pastels and then into richer shades. Or, if you wish, you can have the flowers complement each other. An example would be red Oriental poppies and a back drop of yellow climbing roses.

Blooming Time

When you purchase the flowers for your country garden, pay special attention to blooming times. You want a variety of plants that will keep your country garden alive with color from early spring to late fall. For example, plant bulbs between bee balm, geraniums and leafy phlox. When the blossoms and the leaves of the bulbs die back, the leaves and blossoms of the perennials will camouflage the process. Plant annuals such as four o’ clocks, larkspur and snapdragons that will continue to bloom all summer into late fall.

Use seeders such as coneflowers, cranesbill, black-eyed Susans, lobelia and rudbekias. Cosmos, morning glories and cleome will show up in your garden years after year. Bi-annuals like foxgloves and hollyhocks leave seeds behind that will produce a large selection of plants for the following year. Bee balm spreads rapidly, but can be controlled. Periwinkles act as ground cover and have beautiful leaves and blossoms. Coral bells, daisies, astilbe and daylilies can be separated every couple of years and moved to another part of the garden or given away to family and friends.

Imagination and Creativity

Use your imagination and be creative. You will soon find out which plant species thrive in your garden. Change them through the years to suit your tastes so that each year your country garden will be a place of beauty and inspiration that will lift your spirits and all those who visit it.