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.