You might have the perfect house, but maybe you feel that your garden is lacking. How can you come up with ideas that aren’t identical to your next door neighbour? Get inspired by some of the world’s most iconic and unique gardens to improve your garden and wow your street.

Gardens of Versailles, Versailles, France

A rather grand backyard, the Gardens of Versailles spans over 800 hectares of land (almost 2,000 acres!). It was landscaped in the style of the classic French formal garden, featuring perfectly manicured lawns with intricate patterns. 

If you have a large lawn space, you could take inspiration from these stunning gardens by creating your own exciting designs in the grass. A small detail that adds to the magnificence of the Gardens of Versailles is the precise, sharp borders around the grass. Incorporating this into your own garden is a great way to make your lawn look polished.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn, United States

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden attracts almost a million visitors each year, and is made up of multiple different gardens and conservatories.To name just a few, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden has a herb garden, woodland garden, and fragrance garden. This means that each segment of the garden is a whole new experience of colours, scents and textures.

If you’re big into your plants, having separate growing areas is a great way to show off a variety of different species, whilst still providing the conditions they need to thrive. Although we don’t all have the space or money to create multiple gardens, you can create different experiences in each part of your garden so that it feels new and exciting as you explore it.

Monet’s Garden, Giverny, France

Arguably one of the most recognisable gardens in the world, Monet’s Garden in Giverny features an iconic bridge over a pond adorned with water lilies. This garden is a great example of the ways you can utilise water plants to make your pond look more interesting. Adding a bridge over your pond also adds the feeling of more space, allowing you to (technically) walk on water and admire every part of your garden.

Keukenhof Gardens, Lisse, Netherlands

The Keukenhof Gardens is one of the largest flower gardens in the world, featuring millions of flowers such as tulips, lilies, roses, and hyacinths. What’s so special about these gardens is the way the flowers are meticulously arranged to create beautiful designs. You too can plant flowers strategically to create a cohesive look – be sure to consider the colours and heights of the flowers that you plant together.

Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, Na Chom Thian, Thailand

Nong Nooch Tropical Garden in Thailand boasts multiple gardens, including a dinosaur themed garden with gigantic statues. Another unorthodox feature of the gardens is their stone forest, which is made up of rocks of all shapes and sizes. Each rock was individually placed by the owner of the garden, Mr Kampon Tansacha – proof that sometimes DIY is best!

If you don’t have the time or facilities to keep up with large areas of grass and plants, creating a rock garden is a great idea for a low maintenance garden. Alternatively, read our top tips for garden maintenance.

Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, London, England

Kew Gardens is a World Heritage Site that hosts a diverse collection of plants, including a library and a Fungarium with over 1 million specimens of dried fungi. If you like to collect things as a hobby, displaying them in your garden is a great idea that you might never have thought of. To avoid weather damage, utilise a conservatory or greenhouse like the Kew Gardens have – this way you can keep your plants and collection items together.

The collections at Kew Gardens are so valuable that they even have their own police force who are responsible for policing the gardens. Although this certainly isn’t practical for everyone, there are other ways that you can protect your garden from theft or vandalism. To improve your garden security, consider putting up walls accompanied by a sturdy driveway gate to keep unwanted trespassers away from your property.

Jardins Majorelle, Marrakech, Morocco

The Majorelle Garden was designed by artist Jacques Majorelle over the span of almost forty years. It was later purchased by fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and housed his villa, which is now open to the public as a museum.

The gorgeous blue colour seen is Majorelle Blue, named after the garden’s designer. Many people overlook the impact that paint can have in a garden, but simply painting your walls and wooden gates a bright colour can complement your plants perfectly. The Jardins Majorelle is a perfect example of the way plants and architecture can work together for a stunning effect.

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Cape Town, South Africa

The Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden remarkable grounds feature mountains covered in indigenous plants, as well as a large conservatory. A defining feature of the garden is the vast walkway that allows visitors to explore the grounds from up above. 

If you have a woodland area or a particularly bumpy garden, it could be a great idea to install a walkway similar to the one at Kirstenbosch. This adds an air of sophistication and adventure to any garden.

Summer Palace, Beijing, China

The Summer Palace is an imperial garden from the Qing dynasty that features lakes, gardens and palaces. The garden centres around Kunming Lake, which covers around 540 acres, and has buildings and gardens surrounding it. 

Using a lake as a focal point of your garden is a stunning way to incorporate water onto your property. Once you have a body of water in the centre of your garden, it’s easy to position other features, such as trees and plants, around the lake. It’s also a good idea to create a small border of rocks around the outside of the water, as seen above, as this will keep your garden looking tidy and prevent the ground from becoming swampy.

Desert Botanical Garden, Arizona, United States

Located in Phoenix, Arizona, the Desert Botanical Garden has more than 50,000 plants, including 379 rare or endangered species. Like it says in the name, the garden consists of desert plants like cacti and agave, and supports many different ecosystems that survive in desert conditions.

Although the UK is certainly not lacking rainwater, creating your own desert garden can be easily achieved by researching plant species which are more resistant to differing weather conditions, such as bamboo or Trachycarpus Fortunei. Desert gardens can be great if you live by the coast, or if you’re looking for a garden that doesn’t require intensive care. 

Villa d’Este, Tivoli, Italy

The Villa d’Este is a 16th century villa in Italy which is well known for its hillside Italian Renaissance garden. A highlight of the garden is its beautiful water feature, which is a huge fountain surrounded by many other smaller fountains. Often associated with grandeur and nobility, fountains are a surefire way to add an air of elegance to your garden, as well as incorporating a water feature. 

Looking for more ideas to spruce up your garden? Read our six garden decoration ideas that will transform your garden from drab to divine.

If you take pride in your garden, you’re guaranteed to want to protect and maintain its beauty. A secure driveway gate is the ideal way to keep away unwanted visitors, and will grant you some extra privacy to enjoy your garden. Our team is here to advise on the best kind of gate for your property – contact us today to find out more.