Have you tried or considered trimming your Topiary? Topiary trees are great to add character to any outdoor space. But, let’s be honest, shaping and maintaining a topiary will take patience.

 The Bottom of the Topiary

1. Plant your boxwood in a large container with your soil-based potting mix.  To shape a spiral with a ball shape on top, what you will need to do is start from the bottom and work your way to the top. Create a cone-like figure, leaving the very top untouched for the shaping process later. This is done by roughly clipping your boxwood, nothing needs to be perfect at this point. Think of it as your rough draft.

2. Now you will use your topiary shears. Do little by little to keep a full shape, be careful not to get clipper happy.  Use a wire to create your shape and provide you with a guideline. Loosely wrap your cone-like boxwood with the wire until your foundation is manageable. Use your shears to clip between and cut back the shrub all the way to the steam. Don’t rush this process, you are creating a design and it doesn’t come quickly. Regularly check your shape by stepping back and looking at your design. Moving section by section, you will see where modifications need to be made.

3. In this stage, you will be rounding off the edges to ensure a clean cut and finished look. Use your shears to gradually shape up and round out the edges. Regularly check your work being as meticulous as possible. You can make modifications at this stage.

Pro Tip: Gradually make spirals thinner towards the top to give a more visual appeal.

The Top of the Topiary

1. Your final step is taking care of the top portion of your boxwood. Following the same steps as above, roughly shape out your sphere shape. Next, using wire shape out the desired spiral shape you want. If you make a mistake, do not try to “fix” it. Leave it alone, let it regrow and try again.

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