Hedge Archways...

Having been very taken with the shaped hedges at Highgrove, we decided when we planted our leiland hedges, we would add some interest by having archways and castellations in them.

Above and below: The shaped hedges at Highgrove. 

The archways line up with vistas inside the house, so that from certain French windows you can see through the hedges to focal points, such as a bench under the copse of Oaks in Spencer's corner...

The hedge has made reasonable progress since a year ago...

In time the arch will become higher and acuter, resembling more the sort of arch below...

The arch above looks as if it is fashioned out of a Hornbeam or Beech hedge, whereas the more traditional choice for a clipped hedge would be Yew, like the arch below...

There are many things that you can do with hedges to add interest (other than clip them into waves). Here are some more examples I found on Pinterest, which I rather like...

I really like these topiary obelisks which 'book-end' the hedge nicely and again frame a vista in the garden. 

More hedged pillars...

Niches in a hedge with recessed busts are also a dramatic way to add interest to an otherwise green wall, and give people the joy of discovering things as they journey through the grounds...

The Entrance Begins...

And so, the work on the entrance has begun. It started with removing the fence along the road frontage, removing the Black Walnut tree to the left of the driveway, re-centring the driveway (which will involve shifting the avenue of plane trees 3m to the left this winter), and starting to put in the footings for the wall.

Above and Below: The Black Walnut tree

Above and Below: Removing the Leiland hedge (Temporarily) which I had planted on the day of the royal wedding.

Below: The Walnut being felled...

Above: Morning

Below: Next Afternoon

It was a shame that the Black Walnut had to go. I don't like cutting down trees, but it was right in the way, and it was quite old (branches would usually fall down during high winds). It will be replaced by a pair of weeping willows on either side of the entrance. But to assuage my guilt further, I called the local wood turners' association and offered the wood to them. Black Walnut can make some stunning pieces, and it would have only ended up as firewood otherwise...

 

 Above: Planks of Black Walnut

Below: Some turned Black Walnut

 Pity there was not quite enough to make a black walnut counter top...

Nymphaeum 2...

The Nymphaeum is coming along nicely. 

Above: Looking south towards the entrance.

Below: Looking north from the entrance.

We were lucky enough to find 7 of these carved stone benches to go around the hedging. But alas, have yet to find any Herms/Terms. If anyone knows where We might source some could they please let us know - it would be most appreciated.

Above: An example of one of the benches

As you can see, the hedge has grown about 8 feet in the last year...

Above: Last Spring

Below: This Spring

On our last visit to London we went back to Kew, as I wanted to take some photos of the Herms/Terms there. I had mentioned them in my previous blog, but was disappointed to find I hadn't any nice photos of them from our previous trip. So, here they are...

Topiary...

Above: One of eight paintings of topiary at Hartwell House gardens. Sir Thomas Lee (1687-1749) of Hartwell commissioned the paintings from Balthasar Nebot, a little-known Spanish painter based in Covent Garden. They are a unique record of the country estate and garden at this time.

Topiary (from the latin topiarus (landscape gardener) is the horticultural art of creating living sculpture out of plants. The forms can range from the simple yet stylish geometric forms...

to the more fanciful animals and other subjects.

Once only trained hands crafted these masterpieces...

However, wire framing is often used nowadays to aid correct form and support both the plant and the budding topiarist.

Levens Hall

Levens Hall is a manor house in Cumbria. The first house on the site was a Pele tower built by the Redman family in around 1350, but most of the present building dates from the Elizabethan era, when the Bellingham family extended the house. They were responsible for the fine panelling and plasterwork in the main rooms. Further additions were made in the late 17th and early 19th centuries.



Levens is now owned by the Bagot family and is open to the public. It has a celebrated topiary garden, and also a deer park inhabited by fallow deer and goats.


The gardens are grade I listed and date from 1694. Through a combination of circumstance and love, the gardens have survived in their original design. The topiary is some of the oldest in the world and justifiably famous. The historic topiary garden also incorporates a small orchard of apple trees and medlars, a nuttery and herb garden, a bowling green, a rose garden, herbaceous borders and seasonal bedding.

Above: The Levens gardeners at work in 1950.

Below: Some of the Topiary designs found at Levens

More fanciful Topiary...

Below: Ladew Garden

Seeing the more outlandish topiary that some gardeners dream up (like the racing car above) puts me in mind of a sketch from the BBC comedy Little Britain, whose opening scenes showcase various lewd topiary designs...