I am what you might call an enthusiastic gardener. My garden was created purely by trial an error, mostly, error. Each spring when everything would start to bloom, I would move the plants around until It became esthetically pleasing to me. Inevitably, the blooms would die out and I was left with a bare spots. I made good use of garden ornaments and annuals. It wasn’t until two years ago that I decided to leave well enough alone. That year my garden looked better than It ever had. Lesson learned. Have patience. This is something, I admit I need to be better at.
In my attempt to become a better gardener, I have been watching You Tube videos. The knowledge available out there is exciting and overwhelming at the same time. There are many sources to choose from, I am currently watching a lot of Linda Vater. She has been gardening for thirty years and is a self taught. There are two reasons I enjoy watching her videos. One, she admits not knowing what she was doing in the beginning and learned by trial and error (sounds familiar). Second, she has an English Garden, which is a kind of informal in style. This appeals to me, since I am instinctually drawn to how something looks and feels, rather than following a detailed plan.
One thing I love about Linda Vater’s garden is her many topiaries. I have always wanted to have topiaries, but had no idea how to create one. After watching her on You Tube, I have made an attempt at creating my own topiaries for my front stoop.
This is Linda Vater. You should check her out on You Tube. I left a link to a video tutorial of hers at the end of the post.
This are some of the topiaries she has throughout her garden. I love all the different textures and shapes.
Hopefully, mine will eventually look like the one on the lower right.
These are the two boxwoods I used to make my topiaries. Both were moved during the addition/renovation to protect them from harm. I decided to use them as Guinea Pigs. If I mutilated them at least It hadn’t cost me anything.
Here we go. I have no idea what I am doing!
The first one done. It looked pretty scrawny to me.
I added some plants around the bottom to fill out the container.
At this point, we just have to wait and see how it will look after everything grows out. Fingers crossed!
Number two!
Overall I enjoyed the process. I still think they look like Charlie Brown Christmas trees, but I am starting to feel a real affection for them. I will nurture them and keep you updated on their progress.
Here is the link to the Linda Vater video. I hope her video and my attempt will encourage you to try creating a Topiary too!
If you have any Topiary tips or stories of your garden trial and error, please leave a comment. I would love to hear from you!
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FYI: This is the reason I did not show the topiaries on the front stoop. We are still waiting for them to come to grade our front and back yard from the work that was done. They will also be reseeding and fixing the steps. Oh well! On the bright side maybe as my topiaries become beautiful they will detract from this sight?