Border help please.

[SnickersWasAHorse]

I'm thinking about taking out the hydrangea and half starting again. It's just too big. I cut it back to about 1foot off the ground last year!!

What plants would work here for a full 'cottage garden' look. The bed is west facing and there are a lot of trees. The trees in the bed are an ornamental plum, a rowan and a maple.
Therefore it is in shade until about 2pm and then gets full sun until about 7pm this time of year.
Any ideas.

Anyone?

Your hydrangea is lovely! We have started planting a cottage border this year. It is part shady like yours, although perhaps gets slightly more sun. We have a few roses (there are some that don't mind shade if you look at the David Austin website), we have a peony on the sunnier end of the border, and filled in with feverfew, cranesbill geraniums, alchemilla mollis, ferns, sedum and alliums. We also have a few hebes in there which are really lovely. I'd love lots of lavender in it, but I don't think it gets enough sun unfortunately (and the soil is clay)

I think the shade will affect the type of plants that are traditionally cottage garden. I would keep the hydrangea, it's beautiful. Possibly extend the bed by taking the end of the lawn out, there you could plant cranesbill geraniums, foxgloves, sedums and Astrantia. Theses plants are all cottagey, but would be ok near the trees.

Some nice suggestions there and wow, your hydrangea is fabulous!! I would absolutely leave that in, I think the space would lose a lot of charm without it... or if you are desperate to get rid and are nearby I'd happily take it off your hands for you!

Another thing to bear in mind is that any smaller plants might struggle for moisture being so close to trees.

I can't really change the structure or size of the bed.
The problem with the hydrangea is that it collapses as it gets so leggy. It's complexly tied up.
I've got loads of foxgloves further down the garden as it's woodland further down. I'll throw some seeds up that way though and see what happens.

Here it is from a different angle about a month ago.