How to model a formal garden

The materials for the formal garden laid out, including flock, textures, hedging, trees and glues

A basic guide to creating a formal model garden, with simple techniques for some of the planting you are likely to find in one.

The materials for the formal garden laid out, including flock, textures, hedging, trees and glues

Materials used

  • Masking tape, 24mm
  • Flock adhesive
  • PVA glue
  • A 25mm white bristle brush
  • Light green flock
  • Belton spray paint in Signal White, Med Grey and Milk Coffee
  • Brown ballast
  • Hedging, 25 x 12 x 150mm
  • Light green and mid green medium texture
  • Light green and mid green texture mats
  • Violet and magenta garden flowers
  • 42mm trees, 30mm sisal trees and 42mm conifer trees
  • Slo-Zap
  • 1.5mm round brass tube and 1.0mm brass rod

Grass areas

Mask out the areas that are not grass with a good masking tape, then paint on flock adhesive with a paint brush. Sieve light green flock over the adhesive, covering it completely, and allow it to dry for 3 to 4 hours. Knock off the excess flock, remove the masking tape, then allow it to dry overnight.

Masking the base, sieving green flock over the adhesive, and the finished lawn

Garden paths

Before the grass is applied, spray the path a colour similar to the texture, speckling it with white, grey and milk coffee paint. Then paint the path with watered-down PVA glue and sprinkle the light brown ballast over it. Leave it to dry for about 2 hours, knock off the excess ballast, and leave it for another few hours for the glue to dry fully.

Painting PVA onto the path, sprinkling ballast and the finished gravel path

Formal hedges

Cut the 25mm high hedging to the correct length with scissors, then paint PVA glue onto the cut ends and sprinkle on mid green texture. When it is dry, glue the hedging in place with PVA glue.

Cutting hedging to length with scissors, texturing the cut ends and gluing it in place

Saplings or pollarded trees

  1. Take a 42mm tree and scrape the paint from its planting spigot.
  2. Extend the trunk with a 1.5mm tube, cutting it by rolling a blade on the tube and snapping it.
  3. Trim the tree's planting spigot back so that it reaches halfway down the tube.
  4. Superglue the tube onto the tree's spigot, then superglue the rod into the tube to extend the planting spigot.
  5. Trim the rod to length. Thicken the trunk by painting it with PVA glue, letting it dry, and repeating until the trunk looks thick enough.
  6. When it is dry, paint the trunk brown and glue the tree in place with PVA glue.

Scraping the spigot of a small tree, cutting brass tube and fitting it to the trunk

Gluing the tube and rod, thickening the trunk with PVA, and a row of finished saplings

Low box hedges

Cut a light green texture mat into 6mm strips. Using a plan of the hedges as a guide, cut the strips to length and glue them together with PVA glue. Continue until all the hedges are complete.

Cutting texture mat into strips and building up the box hedge pattern over a plan

Using PVA glue, stick light green texture onto the cut edges. When it is dry, trim any ragged edges and glue the hedges to the baseboard with PVA glue.

Texturing the cut edges of the box hedges and gluing them onto the baseboard

Flower beds

Split a medium green texture mat by tearing it apart, then cut it to the size of the flower bed with scissors.

Tearing a texture mat apart and cutting it to fit the flower beds

Paint a light layer of PVA glue onto the texture mat, so that it is not completely covered, and sprinkle the coloured texture onto it. This creates the flowers, with the green foliage showing through below. When it is dry, knock off the excess texture and stick the flower bed in place with PVA glue.

Sprinkling coloured texture onto the beds and placing them in the garden

Small bushes

Use string and wire trees as bushes and small trees. Drill planting holes, then stick them in place with PVA glue.

Planting small trees and conifers around the formal garden

Low hedging

To frame the formal garden, cut 25mm hedges in half lengthways, paint PVA glue onto the cut ends and sprinkle on medium texture. Stick them in place on the model with PVA glue.

Cutting hedging lengthways and fixing it around the edge of the finished garden