Plants for a Formal Garden
Formal gardens have lots of geometric shapes and hard lines, with the framework of the garden often being clipped into neat topiary. To soften the overall effect, you also need to include a layer of plants that help add colour and seasonal variation.
By type
Facing
How much sun
Special conditions
Multibuy packs
Soil type
Flowering month
Flower colour
Evergreen / deciduous
Fragrance
Attractive to wildlife
Quick growing
Eventual size
Special features
- Architectural silhouettes (30)
- Attractive seedheads (27)
- Autumn foliage colour (6)
- Berries or fruit (20)
- Coloured leaves (5)
- Deciduous (110)
- Easy to grow (145)
- Evergreen / semi evergreen (70)
- Fast growing (7)
- Flowering (409)
- Long flowering (11)
- Low maintenance (70)
- Makes a good hedge or screen (32)
- Non poisonous (78)
- Plants that are native (8)
- Plants that don't need pruning (1)
- Plants that help filter noise (22)
- Plants that show resistance to deer and rabbits (94)
- Plants that will cope with the odd football (28)
- Plants to deter vandals and burglars (7)
- Resistant to diseases (165)
- Stylish in the border (233)
- Sublime umbelliferas (23)
- Suitable for containers (326)
- Suitable for hanging baskets (5)
- Tough plants that are harder to kill (22)
- Winter colour (52)
House plants by room
Bulb type
- Narcissus (Division 1) Trumpet (4)
- Narcissus (Division 11) Split-corona (3)
- Narcissus (Division 12) Miscellaneous (3)
- Narcissus (Division 2) Large-cupped (6)
- Narcissus (Division 4) Double (1)
- Narcissus (Division 5) Triandrus (5)
- Narcissus (Division 6) Cyclamineus (5)
- Narcissus (Division 7) Jonquilla (1)
- Tulip (Division 1) Single early group (7)
- Tulip (Division 10) Parrot group (11)
- Tulip (Division 11) Double late group (16)
- Tulip (Division 13) Fosteriana group (4)
- Tulip (Division 14) Greigii group (3)
- Tulip (Division 15) Miscellaneous group (3)
- Tulip (Division 2) Double early group (5)
- Tulip (Division 3) Triumph group (61)
- Tulip (Division 4) Darwin hybrid group (12)
- Tulip (Division 5) Single late group (18)
- Tulip (Division 6) Lily-flowered group (21)
- Tulip (Division 7) Fringed group (11)
- Tulip (Division 8) Viridiflora group (13)
Sowing month inside or protected
Sowing month outside
Hardy
Leaf colour
Ground cover
Position
Shape
Soil moisture
Used at Chelsea
- 2002 - HRH The Prince of Wales - Laurent-Perrier (3)
- 2003 - Tom Stuart-Smith - Laurent-Perrier (3)
- 2004 - Sir Terrance Conran - Laurent-Perrier (1)
- 2005 - Tom Stuart-Smith - Laurent-Perrier (8)
- 2006 - Tom Stuart-Smith - Laurent-Perrier (13)
- 2007 - Jinny Blom - Laurent-Perrier (5)
- 2008 - Arabella Lennox-Boyd - Daily Telegraph (7)
- 2008 - Tom Stuart-Smith - Laurent-Perrier (9)
- 2009 - Luciano Guibbilei - Laurent-Perrier (9)
- 2009 - Ulf Nordfjell - Daily Telegraph (12)
- 2010 - Andy Sturgeon - Daily Telegraph (5)
- 2010 - Tom Stuart-Smith - Laurent-Perrier (8)
- 2011 - Cleve West - Daily Telegraph (13)
- 2011 - Luciano Guibbilei - Laurent-Perrier (5)
- 2012 - Arne Maynard - Laurent-Perrier (6)
- 2012 - Sarah Price - Daily Telegraph (1)
- 2013 - Christopher Bradley-Hole - Daily Telegraph (7)
- 2013 - Ulf Nordfjell - Laurent-Perrier (4)
- 2014 - Luciano Guibbilei - Laurent-Perrier (4)
- 2014 - Tommaso del Buono - Daily Telegraph (3)
- 2015 - Marcus Barnett - Daily Telegraph (7)
- 2016 - Jekka McVicar - St John's Hospice (2)
- 2018 Tom Stuart-Smith - Garfield Weston Foundation (10)
- 2019 - Andy Sturgeon - M & G (1)
- 2019 - Sarah Eberley - Forestry Commission (3)
Seed planting guidelines
Copyright Crocus 2019