Welcome to Cottage Garden……

A fond hello to returning plantoholics and welcome to those of you entering our website for the first time. Cottage Garden is small but packs a big horticultural punch! I started this plant zoo in my back yard on Christian Hill in Alton , Illinois (near St. Louis Mo. ) in 1985. The 'Mom' nursery became 'Mom and Pop' when I moved to my Dad's strawberry farm here in Piasa IL (say Pie-a-saw) in 1987, and my husband Bill came to work with me.

What can I say? Doing what I love best, I get to buy just about every plant that catches my fancy and work with beautiful living things all the time….yes, life is good. Unlike the X-Marts, I seek out the new and unusual and my passion is displaying them in creative and innovative ways and sharing them with you.

Our menagerie also includes two pets, our rascally Jack Russell terrier, P.J., always on the prowl for squirrels, moles, and especially, treats brought to the nursery by his many devoted fans and our fellow gardeners. Joe, our new basset hound-beagle mix found us last autumn when he wandered onto our property and made himself right at home.

A word about our plants. We grow on and finish all of our plant material here on our prairie nursery in southwestern Illinois . Perennials are exposed to a hardy outdoor climate year round, and will not require fussy acclimating when you receive them. Plant them out directly, and watch them take off. Annuals and tropicals are greenhouse grown, although they are acclimated to somewhat cooler temperatures in spring before we ship them. They should be planted out when night time temperatures remain above 50F degrees. Special instructions are always included with your order when we deem necessary.

We are here to answer any questions you may have, please feel free to call, email or write, as your comments are always welcome.

Chris Kelley