Cottage Garden Design in New Hampshire - Mountain State Romantic Landscaping

Choose Zone 4-rated perennials and shrub roses for reliable performance. Focus on plants that thrive in New England: peonies, delphiniums, astilbes, and hardy geraniums. Incorporate woodland natives like columbine and ferns for shade areas. Select roses proven in cold climates.

Embrace New Hampshire's signature stone walls as cottage garden backdrops. Plant climbers on wall-mounted trellises. Use wall pockets for heat-loving herbs. Create planting beds along wall bases with excellent drainage. Let plants spill casually over weathered stone.

Blend cottage gardens into forest edges with shade-tolerant perennials. Create transitional plantings from full sun to woodland shade. Use astilbes, hostas, and ferns in dappled light. Position sun-lovers in open areas, shade plants at woodland margins.

Maximize short growing season with continuous bloom succession. Layer spring bulbs, early summer roses and peonies, mid-summer delphiniums and lilies, late-summer asters and Japanese anemones. Create bold color combinations in the brilliant northern light.

Build sturdy arbors and fences to withstand snow loads. Use cedar or treated wood for longevity in wet climate. Create covered areas protecting plants from spring frosts. Design pathways with drainage to handle snowmelt and rain.

Use local materials: granite stone, weathered cedar, and rustic wood. Create gravel paths with native stone. Build raised beds with local fieldstone. Embrace weathering and patina that develop in New England climate.