Creating good quality Topiary is a painfully slow process. Be patient! On the plus side, the best trees for Topiary are exceptionally long-lived, and a Yew tree can last a thousand years. Similarly, a good Topiary specimen can be forty years or more before it achieves perfection.

Almost any plant can be trimmed and shaped, but some tolerate this abuse better than others. Choose the right plant for the type of project you have in mind. We recommend and use three species in the main; Box (Buxus sempervirens), Yew (Taxus baccata) and Bay (Laurus nobilis), although Holly (Ilex) is also good in some situations. Find out more about these plants please follow this link to our special page dedicated to Plant Species and Topiary.

The shape of your Topiary may be determined by whim or fashion, but is also best to account for the plant itself. Frames can be used, but are frowned upon by purists. Yew lends itself well to tall shapes, such as Cones, Pyramids and, because of the way the branches grow away from the stem, Spirals. Box is excellent for solid three-dimensions and tight clearly defined edges, so is often used for Cubes and Pyramids as well as Globes and Balls. Bay, which can be encouraged to bush out at height, is perfect for stemmed specimens.