The Formal Garden
Sue and Dave oonahan’s garden, Upton oaks, is revered for its manicured gardens. of particular note are the formal garden areas in two distinctive genres. The 17th century-style knot garden illustrates strong structure, perfectly executed dimensions and precision clipping – by Dave!
Adjacent is an equally captivating formal garden, consisting of a generous lawn, flanked by deep perennial borders. The lawn sweeps towards a central focal point that is comprised of a circular pond and classic white Lutyens bench seat.
Distinguished largely by straight lines and symmetry, formal style is timeless, elegant and orderly. It translates well to gardens of any size and never fails to gain maximum impact. It’s well-suited to smaller gardens, which benefit from the imposed order and constraint in the planting palette.
Vistas terminating in a strong focal point are integral to a formal design – either a demure sculpture or water feature in a small garden, or grand avenue of trees drawing the eye to distant scenery in a large garden.
Planting is usually kept simple with a restricted range of plants and restrained use of colour. Alternatively, cottage-style planting can be implemented, but always within the bounds of tightly clipped hedges, which are used extensively to outline garden beds and demarcate different areas.
Topiary is commonly to bind the overall design, or in pairs to enhance an entranceway or denote a change of level. Formal gardens impart a calming effect but also one of unnatural enforced control.
The Informal Garden
Hortensia House, the delightful garden of Huguette oichel-Fleurie and husband Georges, was not planned but simply evolved as Huguette indulged in her passion for flowers and colour. Garden beds wrap around verandas of the Victorian-style home, curve towards the main entrance and flank paths leading to the kitchen garden and beyond.
A diverse, intermingled assortment of plants comes together in a profusion of colour from spring to autumn. The planting palette focuses on pastels, which Huguette arranges carefully in complementary hues. Blues are used throughout to bind the overall effect.
Rambling cottage gardens are the stereotypical informal garden. But any style of planting, from subtropicals and succulents to natives and veges, can be used. Informal designs use sweeping curves and serpentine garden beds, filled with an array of different plants, to create a natural, free-flow effect.
Whereas a formal garden is often arranged in rooms with doors leading from one area to the next, an informal design invites exploration with the use of paths and lawns that curve away to hidden areas beyond.
Unpretentious planting provokes spontaneous interaction with plants – smelling flowers, crushing foliage and allowing the viewer to savour the surroundings.
But as with a formal design, an informal garden benefits from a solid backbone to carry it through the stark winter months.
And as rules were made to be broken – and I like the idea of both styles – there’s good reason to combine the two!
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