Home & Garden

Wander Through These 20 Romantic French-Style Home Gardens

February 6, 2021
Tamar A. Clark
Wander Through These 20 Romantic French-Style Home Gardens




Lindsey Campbell, Sarah DiMarco


At the mere mention of French gardens, scenes of fragrant orange trees, grand bubbling fountains, and symmetrical lawns of Versailles often flood the mind. And while the royal grounds may be the country’s most notable outdoor space, a quick trip to the countryside will prove that French landscaping goes well beyond clipped shrubs and serene reflecting pools.

Filled with picturesque arbors ideal for late summer afternoon tea, cypress-lined paths pulled straight from a storybook, and olive trees aplenty, these home gardens from all across France (and one a bit further) showcase the heart of French garden design. Now, get ready to be lost amongst the vibrant blooms and striking designs of these romantic French-style gardens.



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The Provence Region

Enchanted by the bountiful gardens and bordering pear orchard of Le Mas des Poiriers, designer Susan Bednar Long incorporated vivacious floral patterns throughout the home. The lavish textiles and designs mimic the thriving hornbeam hedges, lamb’s ears, and towering plane trees lining the entry allée.



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English Countryside

While Richard Smith’s convivial country home may be located high above the English Channel, elements of French style can be seen throughout the home’s verdant grounds. A labyrinth of hornbeam hedges conceals antique treasures such as this cast-stone urn.



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The Aube Region

Brunelleschi, the playful peacock, struts across the formal, 17th-century-style gardens of Château de Pouy-sur-Vannes with hushed splashes of water from the ground’s fountains serving as his soundtrack.



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New England

Dating back to the gardens of the French Renaissance, formal parterres were often used as decorative embellishments to add interest within a green space. Landscape designer Drew Kenn planted crab apple trees, dwarf boxwood, and New Guinea impatiens in a parterre-style at this Connecticut cottage to highlight a path to the riverbank.



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Versailles

Tucked away on grounds of Versailles, the Trianon served as a private retreat for Louis XV to escape from the chaos of court. The King had embarked on a massive expansion of the Trianon gardens, adding pavilions, a menagerie, and botanical beds cultivated with specimens from all over the world.



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New England

On their sprawling 11-acre farm in Connecticut, Robb Nestor and Bill Reynolds relied on straight-lined geometric shapes—a hallmark of French garden design—to divide the different gardens. Boxwood hedges frame cabbage plantings contained in willow wattle fencing.



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The Aube Region

Built in the 12th century as a military fortress, Château de Pouy-sur-Vannes stands as a soaring example of the region’s architecture and history. Homeowner and designer Juan Pablo Molyneux restored many original elements of the home, including its surrounding moat and formal gardens.



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Houston, Texas

The simplistic beauty of the French-inspired house on this Houston property inspired garden designer Herbert Pickworth to give the gardens a full-scale foliage revision. The 1920s French fountain and a statuesque urn draw the eye through the formal arrangement of crepe myrtles and clipped boxwood.



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Houston, Teas

Referencing the garden follies and tented guard shacks of Versailles, Bill Curtis crafted a copper and steel pergola filled with French flair in this Houston garden. The round pool with the whimsical elephant fountain (Dan Ostermiller) was inspired by the landmark gardens at the Rodin museum in Paris.



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French Riviera

Designer Piero Castellini Baldissera embraced the natural flora and foliage of the French Rivera to create a dreamy, fairytale-like setting of this sophisticated villa.



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Los Angeles

Interior designer Anthony Baratta and landscape designer Perry Guillot took design cues from the south of France to infuse this Los Angeles estate with a sense of joie de vivre. The wisteria climbing the garden arbors evokes Claude Monet’s garden at Giverny.



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French Riviera

Outside of a charming villa on the French Riviera, agapanthus and plumbago flowers encircle the garden dining area; beyond are orange, pomegranate, lemon, and cypress trees. The cushions are in a C&C Milano fabric, perfectly suited for lingering lunches on a summer day.



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The Provence Region

When designer Bunny Williams began sketching her renovation of this farmhouse in the South of France, she knew that the interiors and landscape needed to match the everlasting beauty of its setting. With the help of England-based designer Tim Rees, the farmhouse was soon enveloped in classical-inspired garden with fountains, parterres, and groves of cypress and olive trees.



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Versailles

The linden trees at the main axes of the Nouveau Jardin du Roi were originally a part of a substantial expansion in 1748. Still standing nearly 300 years later, the foliage is pruned in an arch shape to provide a shady path for afternoon strolling.



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The Dordogne Region

At a restored country farmhouse in the Southwest region of France, pea gravel defines an inviting spot for alfresco meals on the terrace, which is surrounded by boxwood, lavender, and cypress.



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The Provence Region

Stone walls, terraced planting, and a delicate arbor lend themselves to a whimsical gathering in the formal gardens of this Provence estate.



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Los Angeles

Towering cypress trees and trimmed boxwoods in this Los Angeles garden mimic those seen on the contemporary grounds of La Louve, the former home of famed Hermès textile designer Nicole de Vésian.



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The Provence Region

Beyond the swimming pool of this 200-year-old France estate lies a 65-acre farm that produces an abundance of pears, sunflowers, and wheat. Slender cyprés de Florence and manicured boxwoods punctuate the landscape surrounding the pool.



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The Dordogne Region

The medieval pigeonnier on the grounds of this country farmhouse by Marston Luce includes boxwood, European wild ginger, and impatiens, establishing a lush escape.



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21/21 SLIDES





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