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There is no need to stick rigidly to these suggestions, but here are some examples of how you might treat each area:

New focal points
Each area needs a central feature that can draw attention to itself, so that it sets the special mood. You might want to plant a feature shrub: a lilac (Syringa) or mock orange (Philadelphus), for example, to give lovely blossom in spring and provide later shade.

On a newly erected arch, or a pillar, you could place a couple of climbers - a rose (Rosa) with a late summer-blooming Clematis perhaps, or a honeysuckle (Lonicera). Remember that evergreens are lovely in cottages too, especially hollies (Ilex) of all kinds, or such flowering evergreens as Viburnums (Viburnum tinus).

Composing the plants
Use the central feature to set the colour trend for each section, underplanting each one with a combination of low-growing shrubs and herbaceous plants which reflect, or contrast those colours. Remember seasonality, and include something for autumn and winter, as well as spring and summer.

Ring the changes
You may not get your planting quite right first time - few of us do! But the fun of gardening is making gradual changes as you become more familiar with your plot. You can hone your planting year after year, and derive a great deal of pleasure from watching the gradual changes take effect.

Use lots of annuals
To step up colour, and to heighten your enjoyment, be prepared to beef up your cottage borders with temporary plants. Hardy annuals such as cornflowers (Centaurea) and shirley poppies (Papaver) - from seed directly sown will produce wonderful bursts of colour and, if happy, will re-seed themselves year after year. They have the habit of making any planting look wild and random - just what you want.

For further colour you can even use bedding plants, not massed formally, but dotted here and there where gaps might have appeared. Tobacco plants (Nicotianas), Petunias, snapdragons (Antirrhinums), busy lizzies (Impatiens) and monkey flowers (Mimulus) are particularly handy for this.

And don't overlook the beauty of such traditional cottage biennials as sweet Williams (Dianthus), Canterbury bells (Campanula), foxgloves (Digitalis), honesty (Lunaria) and mulleins (Verbascum).

Food department
By all means raise herbs, fruit or vegetables in a cottage garden. If neatly grown, they can be as pretty as a flower border.

Rows of lettuce or ornamental cabbages (Brassica) can be spruced up with coloured flowers and if you select French marigolds (Tagetes), you will also inhibit some insect pests, while attracting beneficial hover flies.

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