parterre

thumb|upright=1.4|right|Conservation and restoration of historic gardens|Restoration work on a parterre en broderie at [[Wrest Park, England]] thumb|upright=1.4|The palace at Oranienbaum, Russia, parterre en broderie with six colours of mineral base, and red flowers. thumb|upright=1.4|Cutwork parterre with only grass and gravels, at the Peterhof Palace in Russia thumb|upright=1.4|Victorian parterre at Waddesdon Manor (2016)

A parterre is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, plats, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the part of the garden nearest the house, perhaps after a terrace. The view of a parterre from inside the house, especially from the upper floors, was a major consideration in its design. The word "parterre" was and is used both for the whole part of the garden containing parterres and for each individual section between the "alleys".