“Paths meander through the snowdrops” Hundreds of galanthus, aconites and hellebores kickstart the seasonal colour in this pretty cottage garden
Hundreds of galanthus, aconites and hellebores kickstart the seasonal colour in this pretty cottage garden. Owner Shirley Shadford takes us on a tour
This handsome thatched cottage provides the perfect backdrop for a garden filled with snowdrops. “All I ever wanted was to live in a thatched cottage with roses round the door,” says owner Shirley Shadford, who lives here with her husband Paul. “Now I have it, I still can’t quite believe it!
“It took us three years to find the right house. It’s only two up, two down, but now all our children are adults, we don’t need as much space.”
The couple moved to Clover Cottage 16 years ago and experienced life living in a house built in 1620, where no wall or floor was ‘square’. “There are no straight lines in the garden either,” she laughs. “The front boundaries are straightforward, making a neat square plot, but at the back there’s an ancient wall on one side and a fence on the other, making it narrow in parts and wide in others – very loosely an S shape.
“It suits the age of the property though – I’ve even changed the path that leads from the gate to the front door, so you now have to meander. Getting to the house is now a ‘journey’ through the plants.”
The garden was pretty empty when the Shadfords moved in – with a nasty surprise in store. “The front had just a field maple and a holly tree and at the back there was an old apple and one plum,” says Shirley. “Then at the bottom of the garden we discovered a household tip, which involved removing 21 trailer-loads of rubbish! We decided to pave the sunken area that was left behind to accommodate a summerhouse and seating area overlooking neighbouring fields.
“In the area where the back garden widened, we dug out a goldfish pond shaped like an eye, adding a gentle slope in the shallows where birds can bathe and hedgehogs can drink.”
The soil at Clover Cottage is neutral, well drained and fertile. “It’s perfect for so many different plants,” says Shirley. “Aiming for an old English cottage garden, I began by planting each fence and wall with climbing roses, honeysuckle and clematis. Then I filled the beds with geraniums, hellebores and, for late winter, snowdrops, aconites, miniature iris and Cyclamen coum.”
Shirley admits she had no overall plan and can’t remember all the Latin names. “I hate the idea of having white labels sticking up everywhere,” she says. “But when choosing plants for the garden I wanted to find cultivars that might have been around when the cottage was built. Galanthus nivalis, the single snowdrop and its double form G. nivalis ‘Flore Pleno’ are perfect – they’re the mainstays of my winter garden, along with bright yellow winter aconites (Eranthis hyemalis). Both self-sow and spread themselves around, so each spring, I knock the seedheads gently onto the ground with a cane to help disperse the seeds.”
Gradually, the garden has filled with the plants Shirley loves. “By lifting and dividing perennials each year, I’ve stocked the garden for very little cost,” she says. “Seven years after moving in, I was invited to join the National Garden Scheme along with another gardener in the village. Now we open for a few weekends in February and again in June, just as the roses are looking their best.”
Shirley takes a relaxed approach to her gardening. “It’s not a chore at all. I love every minute I spend out here,” she says. “My philosophy is simple: if I like it, I plant it. And, if I anything gets too big or spreads too much, I divide it.”
Anything surplus to requirements is either replanted in another position or potted up and sold on garden open days. “Then, at the end of the year, around October or November, I work around the garden with my secateurs and shears, cutting all the herbaceous perennials down to ground level. “I’m left handed so I work anti-clockwise, cutting down all the old foliage and seedheads before Christmas, so I can see the bulbs and new shoots as they’re coming through in spring. The whole process takes about six weeks, tackling one 3m (10ft) strip at a time.”
One of the main charities the NGS supports is Macmillan Cancer Support. “When my father was dying of cancer some years ago, their nurses were such a support to me,” says Shirley. “By opening the garden and growing plants to sell on their behalf, I’ve been able to give something back.”
Shirley is a gardener who can leave no space unused. “In the front garden I’ve added raised sleeper beds to grow herbs and salad crops, and I’ve planted a line of step-over apple trees and fan-trained plums and pears along the boundary. We also have an allotment for growing veg.
“Paul’s the perfect garden partner – he helps with the heavier work when asked, but otherwise, the garden is my domain! Making time, every day, to go out and enjoy what you’ve created is very important. I certainly love our cottage, but I don’t think I could live without the garden.” ✿
My philosophy is simple: if I like it, I plant it. If it spreads too much, I divide it