In October, Andrew Sankey, garden designer and historian, gave an entertaining talk to Reepham WI on the evolution of the English cottage garden, from medieval times to the modern day.
He introduced his talk by sharing that he has given talks in America on the cottage garden, where they have formed a romanticised vision of what a typical English cottage garden is, influenced by the watercolour paintings by the Victorian artist, Helen Allingham. Her “chocolate box” images often include a young maiden in a bonnet, outside a thatched cottage surrounded by pretty flowers, with no vegetables or compost heaps in sight.
The medieval cottage garden could not be further from this perception. The dwellings, home to some 90% of the population who were peasants, were small, often housing a family of up to 13 children, with livestock sharing the inside warmth during winter months.
The land surrounding the cottage was laid out with raised beds, planted solely with produce to sustain the family, such as onions, cabbages and leeks. Herbs were important, used for flavouring the basic one-pot meals, as well as for medicinal purposes.
It was not until around 1557 that Thomas Tusser wrote a book on good husbandry, and under the influence of Henry VIII gardens became more elaborate with fruit trees and flowers introduced for more decorative uses. Rare species were brought to the UK from countries such as China, Turkey and South America.
Potatoes were not introduced until 1830; shrubs did not make an appearance until 1870/80. This period was the high point of the English cottage garden, with productivity and utility, as well as beauty, of equal importance.
County Life magazine came into being around this same, igniting the creation of “show” gardens – with space gradually given over to lawns and ornaments there was little space for growing vegetables. But as times and diets changed gardeners once again yearned to grow their own produce, hence the creation of allotments, certainly a popular pastime in Reepham.
Reepham WI meets on the third Thursday of each month at 7.30 pm at St Michael’s, Reepham. The next meeting on Thursday 21 November will be the AGM, followed by an interactive quiz hosted by Brenda Gostling.
Dee Taylor