A flowering English cottage garden could be the trending landscaping option your yard has been missing.
That said, is the English cottage garden trend one that potential buyers will flock to or run from?
And can an English cottage garden actually increasecurb appeal?
Credit: Bob Stefko
Experts say it all has to do with how the garden is planned and grown.
Yardzenlandscape architect Kevin Lenhart has some thoughts on why this look is gaining popularity.
Committing to that maintenance, then, is the key to a good-looking (and buyer-friendly) cottage garden.
Credit: Laurie Black
How you do that is up to youbut our experts have a few tips.
“Cottage is sort of the more wild, diverse, unkempt version,” he says.
“English would be more formal.
English gardens utilize hedges and crisp, vertical evergreen accents to define spaces and punctuate certain areas.”
“There is an illusion of it being natural looking,” she says.
“The antithesis is something that is very formal.”
Schwartz has seen more and more homeowners requesting this style for their yards.
She has one herself on a lot in Shaker Heights, a Cleveland suburb.
Once installed, she says maintenance is minimal.
“It can be very high-maintenance, or lower maintenance depending on plant choices,” she says.
“But it’s a mix.
It means you have something that will always be in bloom.
The garden will always be changing.”
Her yard has some dry spots, a moist spot, and different types of shade.
“It’s an inner-city, suburb lot but it’s crammed full of plants,” she says.
“Cottage gardens look like theplants are in charge,” Lenhart says.
Ready to boost your own curb appeal with a little organized chaos?
You have plenty ofcottage-style garden plansat your disposal.
