The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett made a huge impact on 12-year-old me (if you’ve never read it yourself, I highly recommend it). In addition to the story, I fell in love with the beauty and magic of the cottage garden. I’ll lead you through the essentials of cottage—aka English—garden design. How to choose plants, colors and textures to create romantic, ethereal spaces. The importance of structure—which cannot be overstated. And how to achieve that intangible, whimsical sentimentality the cottage garden is known for. Whether looking for a formal space to entertain or an intimate, informal place for your own enjoyment, you’ll learn how to achieve both while keeping that charming, nostalgic quality of a cottage garden.
About Kelly Orzel
I’m a small-scale, organic herb farmer, author and speaker growing in coastal Maine. You can find me in the greenhouse, looking slightly rumpled. Besides dirt, I’m obsessed with bread and cheese, over-sized sweaters and Jane Austen novels.
At heart I’m a teacher (I taught high school math for 6 years), so get ready to sow and grow like a pro! Want to become a master seed-starter and propagator? I’m your girl. Do you have a love affair with show-stopping dahlias and ready to take your flower patch to the next level? I can teach you how. Or are you ready to become a vegetable garden boss and grow a pantry-full of food? Well, then you’re in the right place!
Since 2012, I’ve spoken at over 300 events all over New England to home garden enthusiasts like you. And, as a self-confessed garden geek and bibliophile, I can’t wait to share with you everything I’ve experienced and learned.
When I’m not digging in soil, I’m wholeheartedly excited about teaching others how to grow the garden of their dreams. Over the past 20 years I’ve worked as a horticulturist on a 70-acre farm, dabbled in plant biotechnology, earned my masters in Horticulture, volunteer as a Maine Master Gardener and owned my own herb farm. And I really want to share everything I know with you!