Formal Garden Ideas

Formal garden ideas vary widely according to culture and historical period of origin. Nevertheless, all share a common humanistic sense that man is the center of creation. Because of this, symmetry and geometry are the essential ingredients of any formal garden style, no matter what shape or size

Geometry is normally based around the key motifs of home architecture and points in some way toward the direction of the house. Many gardens are built around a central axis that lines up with an entryway or window. Others have bisecting axes that lead to a central courtyard built around focal point like a fountain or sculpture. This focal point can be seen from the house, and you can see the house as well when standing or sitting near the focal point. This creates a synergy of elegance between the house and the garden that establishes a feeling of order and system throughout the entire landscape.

Most formal garden ideas are based around the geometry of quadrilaterals. Depending on size or position, the borders may be in the form of a perfect square or a rectangle that follows a linear progression through various zones of greenery, flowering species, and special decorations. Pathways running through the garden can be built of stone, brick, or gravel. Material choices are mainly based on cultural or historical relevance to the particular design being developed.

To make any formal garden idea work from an organic perspective, you must approach vegetation with an atypical mindset. It is very hard for do-it-yourself gardeners to create their own formal garden designs because they have taught all their lives that more is better when it comes to the number of plant types you put in a garden. In formal design, however, the exact opposite is true. Too many different plant species makes the garden look out of control even when constantly tended to.

Professional gardeners, on the other hand, carefully choose first a style, and then select only a limited number of plant materials to use. Rather than having countless plants and flowers that overwhelm the senses, landscape professionals will create repeating patterns of geometry by using same types few shrubs, trees, hedges, and special flowering plants. By connecting these zones together in spirals arms, circles, rectangles, or squares, landscape professionals can create a nearly infinite number of forms with only a handful of plants that are easy to maintain.

Always make sure you work with a company like Exterior Worlds that knows botanical science, drainage, and irrigation methods. The Houston landscape looks deceptively plain, but in reality can be quite tricky and problematic when it comes to water management. Always work with an experienced team who can safeguard your formal garden ideas against the floods and droughts that can hit our part of the world without warning.