Backyards · 6 ideas
English Cottage Backyard Ideas
English cottage backyards look like they have always been there: informal borders that spill over brick paths, climbing roses on an arbour or a shed, clipped box for a little structure, and stone, brick and painted timber that age gracefully. The style suits older houses and any garden with room for planting.
That's all 6 — browse every backyard idea
About this collection
English Cottage Backyard Ideas, explained.
English cottage backyards look like they have always been there: informal borders that spill over brick paths, climbing roses on an arbour or a shed, clipped box for a little structure, and stone, brick and painted timber that age gracefully. The style suits older houses and any garden with room for planting.
The trick is structure under the abundance — a clear path, an axis, a hedge or wall to plant against. Save the backyard designs whose bones you can see through the flowers.
English cottage design is abundance with a plan. Look for brick, flagstone or gravel paths that give the eye a route, borders packed with roses, foxgloves, lavender, catmint and delphiniums, and a little structure from clipped box, a picket fence or an arbour. Materials are aged — reclaimed brick, painted timber, weathered stone — and there is always somewhere to sit: a bench under a tree, a bistro table by the door.
What to look for as you browse
- How the space is zoned — dining, lounging, lawn, planting
- Sightlines from the back door to the furthest feature
- Layers of privacy: canopy, screening, structure
More spaces
