Focal points are the visual hinges of a garden scheme, and can be used to add structure to the design. They are the features or objects in a garden that draw the eye and lead the visitor towards them, and they play a pivotal role both in movement round the garden and in the composition as a whole. In fact, the choice and positioning of focal points can be central to the success or failure of the garden design.

A focal point can be accomplished in a number of ways, such as:

• a dramatic fountain at the end of an avenue
• the perfect positioning of a simple garden pot at the end of a wall
• an urn or obelisk in a formal setting
• a bench under a rose-covered trellis
• a hammock swinging under an apple tree
• a piece of sculpture half hidden in a border
• a gate leading out of the garden to the landscape beyond
• a pool set to catch a reflection or incorporating a small water jet to create the sound of gently running water

It can be achieved equally well by careful planting: a well chosen group of plants or tree can be sited so as to stand out in sharp relief against their surroundings. It may also be possible to design the garden to take advantage of an existing, established feature such as a specimen shrub in a lawn or a group of trees in a country garden.

However, a garden can only support a certain number of focal points. A small garden should only contain one, whilst a larger garden can house a few more as long as they are sited in different areas. A single object in well positioned seclusion is always more effective than a number, which can appear unrestful.

The important factor is that the focal point should attract you to it for some purpose - whether to divert you momentarily from the area you are passing through, to lead you on to some other view or some other part of the garden, to convey an atmosphere of mystery to a section of the garden or to surprise you as you turn a corner. A poorly positioned object simply draws the eye at the expense of other things around it, foreshortens the garden and ruins the design.