Looking for ways to dress up your garden? Then how about introducing topiary plants?
 
The topiary concept is nothing new. It’s been used in different European gardens for centuries.  From the early Roman gardens to our modern-day equivalents, these striking and versatile decorative accents have inspired many garden designers to create stunning landscapes. If you want to create a garden that stands out, a topiary plant can work wonders when upping the decorative content!
 
What exactly is topiary and how do you maintain it?
 
Basically, it is the art of training evergreen shrubs and plants in different stylised forms and shapes that can instantly add a beautiful touch to the garden. As examples, they can be transformed into particular shapes, like globes, boxes, cubes or triangles. Larger plants and shrubs can also be turned into intricate designs, for example, shaped like types of animal. They can be as simple, intricate or whimsical as you please.
 
If you have an existing topiary, it will need to be taken care of on a regular basis. It should be trimmed at least twice a year in order to retain its shape. The frequency of trimming depends largely on the species of plant. Even if you have a particular specimen that has been neglected, you can still restore it to its former glory with a little care and attention.  Plants such as box, holly and yew, for instance, respond to hard pruning which needs to be done mid or early spring. The time it takes for a specific plant to reach the desired shape depends on the type of species.
 
A topiary plant has certain basic requirements that need to be addressed, like watering at the right intervals, adding fertilisers and ensuring there is adequate protection from the elements.
 
Design options for topiary plants are endless.  They can be used in so many different ways – either indoors or as an outdoor feature in your garden.  Smaller topiaries can even be used as hanging features, or you could display them in planters on your patio. You’d be amazed how many different ways you can showcase your external and garden areas with a topiary display
 
Check out the options we have in store here at Twig of Tetbury. We currently stock box topiary plants, large topiary balls, real topiary trees and more besides. Any of these could look stunning in your garden and on paths and entrance ways. Have a good old topiary browse!