How to Make A Topiary

I had dismantled my four-foot tall topiary after it graced our living room and then front porch for four years.

Apparently I never got a picture of it, so I can’t show you what it looked like; but it was very pretty and actually quite similar to the artist rendering in this photo from Print Artist: The Design Collection.

Maybe that’s OK because the picture I do have allows you to better see how a potted topiary is created.

I saved the base for whenever I want to do one again. You can make them any size – from tabletop to about the size of mine.

All you need are a clay flowerpot, into which you pour mixed cement, into which you stick a twig or bamboo pole.

Then take a block (or several blocks for a large topiary) of florist foam and wrap the foam in a sphere of chicken wire.

Impale the sphere on top of the twig or stick once the cement has firmed completely.

I used evergreens from the yard to cover the ball completely. Then I interspersed bunches of artificial roses and tied a pretty wired ribbon around the top of the bamboo, letting it trail down the pole.

If you’re wondering how my topiary lasted for four years, here’s the secret. When the evergreens dried out and turned brown, I removed the roses, took the topiary out to the driveway and spray-painted the dead evergreens green again!

No one ever guessed.

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