Design your own border

A heavenly flower border is a work of art, a living composition in which colour themes are finely balanced to wax and wane through the seasons

1 When choosing the plants for a cottage garden border, start with a selection of herbaceous perennials that will come back year after year. Choose varieties that are also attractive to pollinators, s

Evergreen hedging and flowering shrubs can help to revitalise this sunny white-themed border, says Ian Hodgson

Colour-drench your plot all summer using a shrewd selection of splashy bedding plants

If your garden is parched, exposed or has poor soil, there are still plenty of plants that will thrive, says Joe Swift

Use a palette of palest pastels for this jostling, flower-filled midsummer scheme, says Helen Billiald