A Modern Australian Cottage Garden by Tim Pilgrim | GARDEN DESIGN IDEAS | Bean There Dug That

This beautiful modern cottage garden makeover showcases the best of autumnal colours and textures - it's bursting with garden design ideas for Australian gardens. Welcome to this garden tour of Oak Cottage garden, who's garden design is by the talented Tim Pilgrim. Situated in Macedon, just an hour northwest of Melbourne, nestled beneath a 100-year-old oak tree, this garden offers a perfect blend of contemporary garden design ideas and traditional charm, with seasonal planting ideas for year round beauty. Join me, Chloe from Bean There Dug That, as we explore this enchanting autumn garden and see how it has transformed over the past year.
This garden, planted only a year ago, has matured beautifully, showcasing vibrant autumnal colours. The sunken garden space, enhanced by staggered plantings, invites you to explore its depths, offering a tranquil escape. The garden's design thoughtfully incorporates the existing 100-year-old oak tree, creating a unique blend of history and modernity. Tim Pilgrim's expertise is evident in every corner, from the dead seed heads adding texture to the neatly clipped westringias.
As we wander through the garden, you'll notice the clever use of recycled sleepers to create a retaining wall around the fire pit area, adding both functionality and charm. The garden's cool colour palette, mixed with silvers and the texture of grasses, creates a relaxing and calming environment. The Willow-Leaved Pears, often mistaken for olive trees, add a distinctive touch with their curled leaves.
One of the highlights of this garden is the seamless integration of various plant species to create a dynamic and ever-changing landscape. The oak tree's shade creates a microclimate, presenting both challenges and opportunities. Despite losing a few plants over the past year, the garden thrives with hellebores, ferns, liriopes, and the beautiful oakleaf hydrangea.
The front entrance, with its contemporary cottage garden surrounding a traditional cottage, sets a picture-perfect scene. The use of box hedges right up against the house connects the garden and the house, creating a unified and harmonious space. The Seaside Daisy borders add a tough, drought-tolerant edge that requires minimal maintenance.
Moving to the backyard, we find a spacious lawn perfect for the family's dog to run around, veggie beds for homegrown produce, and a charming potting shed. The removal of a large water tank has opened up the space for Virginia's dream of a beautiful glasshouse. The espaliered apples along the fence promise a productive addition to the garden once they mature.
Virginia, having lived most of her life in a warmer climate, relied on Tim Pilgrim's expertise to create a garden that not only fits the cottage's era but also thrives in the cooler Macedon climate. The repetition of silvery plants like Seaside Daisies, Lambs Ear, and cat mint from the front yard to the backyard ties the spaces together, despite their current differences.
As we conclude our tour, it's clear that this garden is more than just a visual delight; it's a year-round retreat that changes with the seasons. In winter, when the deciduous trees shed their leaves, the garden will still offer beauty with its grasses and perennials ready to burst back to life in spring. This garden truly belongs on the cover of a magazine, and it inspires us to consider the seasonal changes and plant varieties that offer beauty throughout the year.
📣 We’d love to hear your favourite features of this garden. Share in the comments below.
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GARDEN DESIGN & LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION:
🌱 Tim Pilgrim from Tim Pilgrim Gardens - www.tpgardens....
GARDEN OWNER:
🌱 Oak Cottage - / oakcottage.macedon
FILMED ON: Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung & Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung country in Macedon, VIC
BEAN THERE DUG THAT:
Your go-to for gardening know-how and access to inspiring Australian gardens - Horticulturist & Garden Coach Chloe Thomson
Website: www.beanthered...
Newsletter: www.beanthered...
Instagram: / beantheredugthat
Grow your gardening knowledge, learn how to keep your plants alive, & garden in any space with Chloe’s online gardening course: SPROUT SCHOOL!
🌱 Sprout School www.beanthered...
DO YOU HAVE A GARDEN YOU WANT US TO FEATURE?
Contact us here - forms.gle/oUTk...
VIDEO CREDITS:
🌱 Host: Chloe Thomson / beantheredugthat
🌱 Cinematography: Ger Hynes www.hynesiteph...
#gardendesign ##ModernCottageGarden #gardening #BeanThereDugThat #GardenTour #gardendesignideas #SeasonalGardening #ContemporaryCottageGarden #GardenDesign #AutumnColours #GardenInspiration #CottageGarden #MelbourneGardens

[@Sonya-k2b]

Was so excited to see this. Great to see in my lunch break

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Love that - a quick hit of great garden viewing during your lunch break :-) Thanks for watching

[@stephanie_l]

I love everything about this garden... The different textures are stunning and the sunken garden.. Tim is my absolute favourite landscaper...

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Thanks so much for watching Stephanie - it’s such a beautiful garden isn’t it!

[@Gold-Dust-Acres2000]

Absolutely beautiful 😍

[@BeanThereDugThat]

So beautiful isn’t it! Thanks for watching

[@stevenwells5843]

Another great BTGG Chloe. Well done.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Thanks Steven 🥰

[@brendalomax1879]

I feel I've watched a thousand garden tours and I can honestly say this garden has thrilled and inspired me like no other. This is the cottage garden twist I've been searching for as I create my own woodland cottage garden. Absolutely breathtaking!! Thank you for this inspirational tour.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Oh my gosh such beautiful feedback - thank you ☺️ I’m so glad you enjoyed the garden and the tour.

[@CassDowding]

Another brilliant tour Chloe! I love seeing gardens at the in-between stages - like with seed heads still attached! We don't get to see enough of these.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

So true! We're all so fast to cut them off - but there is so much textural beauty in leaving them to enjoy for another season :-) Thanks for watching Cass

[@rethap3612]

Fire _under_ a tree is a definite *no* for me. Even if the tree don't burn, I don't like exposing it to such intense heat under branches & leaves.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

I know it looked UNDER the tree, but it really wasn't under the branches. More beside the tree. The owners pruned it back actually too since shooting, so that will have reduced it's canopy span a bit :-)

[@johnjeffry780]

You are welcome

[@BeanThereDugThat]

😊

[@anserbauer309]

So many plants there I haven't seen in years. The Winter roses, lamb's ears, oakleaf hydrangea and seaside daisies all took me back to my Mum's garden when we were kids, though that garden was under a copse of ancient pear trees with some silver birch scattered through and a huge, old tortured olive in the middle. So nice to see them being used in a contemporary garden so beautifully.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

So many beautiful plants 🌱 🥰 thanks for watching

[@lorrainel2314]

So many elements to like about this garden. I love the front yard with the different levels and private sitting areas. I hadn’t seen the backyard before. It may not be formally landscaped but it looks great with those raised beds and crunchy side path leading up to it.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

I totally agree Lorraine - isn't it a beautiful space! And those autumn colours. And I agree the backyard is beautiful too and imagine it with an old style white or black framed glasshouse - swoooooooon!

[@erinthomson4800]

This garden is gorgeous! It's exactly what I'd love to try and create in our new home, it's given me so many ideas. Great work!

[@maplewoodpermaculturefarm]

Brilliant video! Thank you! Will be checking out your other vids!

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Awesome, thank you! That's such a lovely comment to leave :-) Enjoy the other videos!

[@sandydarling9343]

Me to. ❤

[@sandydarling9343]

Loved that it looks like a garden for Australian weather even though Macedon is a coolish area. Well done Tim

[@Sp33dYAU]

Saw your segment on GA a while ago, and randomly found your channel last weekend when searching for Native Australian Family gardens ..... keep doing what you're doing!!! 🤟💌

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Oh yeah I’m so glad you found my channel 🥰 thanks for watching and following along

[@Adam-vr5qn]

Absolutely beautiful, just don't see cottage garden anymore

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Glad you enjoyed the tour ☺️ thanks for watching!

[@jyyj2394]

I love grey foliage plants and all the purple flowers. I spotted an Artemisia there too.

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Ditto - I love grey n silver foliage too. Thanks for watching

[@clregarganis612]

Another beautiful garden thanks for the tour Chloe

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Thanks for watching Clare- so glad you enjoy them ☺️

[@johnjeffry780]

Excellent 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@BeanThereDugThat]

Thanks 🤗