Add a touch of elegance and sophistication to your garden by incorporating the principles of formal garden design. This garden style dates back to ancient Egypt and began to spread throughout Europe in the 16th century. Formal garden design is all about order and balance. Symmetrical plantings, clearly defined paths and trimmed plants all contribute to the formal ambience of a garden.
The easiest way to create a formal garden design is to rely on symmetrical plantings. Create a center line or axis that runs through your garden area and arrange plantings on either side of that axis that are mirror images of each other. Formal gardens usually have their main axis from the house, so relate that main path to your home in some way. Maybe it’s the view from a family room, dining area or patio.
Make the central axis a path in your garden from which other paths radiate. Place a sculpture, bench, or water feature at the other end of the axis to draw the eye toward the garden. Use this central axis of the garden as a reference point for developing all other aspects of the garden.
A formal garden design consists of geometric shapes – usually right angles, but curves also work. The secret is to create clearly defined and recognizable shapes. Typically these shapes outline planting areas, but they could also be part of the landscaping. For example, the main axis could start from a square terrace, run several feet long, stop at a square central hub, and then end in a square area on which a trellis bench sits.
Pathways in a formal garden design must be clearly defined. They can be made of grass, gravel, stone or brick. If you choose lawn, you will have to spend time manually edging the paths to maintain the formality of the garden. Or you can choose to define edges with metal edges or a layer of bricks or pavers.
Formal garden design ideas
1. Pretty delphinium garden with living arbors
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 1](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
2. Display alliums and foxgloves along the garden path
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/formal-garden-200x300.jpg)
3. Minimal country style garden with lush lawn and paved path
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 2](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739486_820_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
4. Fresh lawn with a large dragon tree
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739487_896_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
5. Dreamy spring garden path with pear and purple bulbs
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 3](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739487_66_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
6. Topiary Garden Landscape
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739487_365_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
7. Formal garden design with shrubs, ground covers and paved lawn
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 4](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739487_296_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
8. Topiary boxwood with purple and pink flowering hedge garden
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739488_659_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
9. Formal boxwood garden with pink camellias
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 5](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739488_634_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
10. Rose garden in the front yard with boxwood topiary in the middle
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739488_819_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
11. A purple paradise!
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 6](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739488_581_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
12. Garden greenhouse with pastel flowers all around
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739489_686_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
13. Tiny cottage with flower garden on patio
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 7](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739489_304_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
14. Urban Deck Garden with Hydrangea Hedge Garden
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739489_385_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
15. Greenhouse in a tropical canopy
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 8](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739489_5_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
16. Botanical garden with hosta beds and other plants
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739490_232_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
17. Contemporary garden with a statue in the middle
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 9](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739490_945_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
18. Formal fall garden with colorful foliage plants
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739490_437_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
19. Beautiful lush lawn with bushy shrubs
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 10](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739491_220_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
20. A relaxing lakeside spot at Susan Field
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739491_175_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
21. Architectural garden with Annabelles and hydrangea bed
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 11](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739491_335_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
22. Garden with couch and large privacy walls
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739491_541_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
23. Formal boxwood panels on a bed of pebbles
![28 Modern Formal Garden Design Ideas 12](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739492_929_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
24. City lawn with boxwoods and floral groundcovers
25. Gravel path between boxwood and rose hedges
26. Beautiful knot garden with shed house for relaxation
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739492_468_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)
27. White hydrangea garden with brick walkway
28. Italian hedge garden
![](https://www.careyfashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1711739493_850_28-Modern-Formal-Garden-Design-Ideas.jpg)