This sumptuous book starts with a history of the cottage garden. A chapter on planning and design introduces the main styles and the familiar features of the cottage garden are then covered in turn - from hedges and fences, to paths, arches, furniture and the creative reuse of materials. The following two chapters focus on growing flowers and shrubs and fruit and vegetables. Step-by-step sequences include how to protect young plants, plan a four-year crop rotation, and prune fruit trees. A chapter on livestock and wildlife shows how to care for chickens and other animals, and how to attract wildlife from birds and bees to hedgehogs and bats. A comprehensive directory then breaks down the wide variety of plants that give the cottage garden its appeal.