THE MODERN MINT BLOG
The next topiary workshop I will be teaching is now live on the website and can be booked!
Just visit Waltham Place to get a ticket for the Topiary Workshop I will be teaching on Friday September 4th at Waltham Place. Myself and Chris Poole of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society (Buxus expert! Like, he knows everything there is to know about the plant! So worth booking just to tap into his knowledge….!) will be teaching here for the… fifth year in a row I think?
The garden is a beautiful place to spend time clipping. We will teach you about technique, so you have a good foundation to work from back at home or in gardens you work in. Then we will look at the tools you need, the plants you are likely to work with… and some you might just covet! And finally we will look at design and the shapes that are possible to make.
This is a practical course, you will be clipping. A lot. And different things. But it is lots of fun – short, sharp (tools) and intense. Places go fast so do get onto Waltham Place and book a spot soon.
Buxus, my Norfolk Terrier, came with me to work on the hedges last year. He had the most amazing time running through exploring the garden. I don’t expect you to do quite the same if I meet you on the course, but it will certainly be an informative and fun day.
If you need one-to-one teaching or for a private group, perhaps as part of training for staff or just to improve the garden you are in, then please do look at my teaching page for more information too.
Start of the Whitby Topiary Library
I have been offered a space here in the centre of Whitby, south-facing aspect, with some raised beds in, so that I can make a Topiary Library. In my head, a topiary library is a place to showcase the common (and then not so common) shapes you can make out of topiary. With classical topiary plants, as well as some more unusual pieces. This Topiary Library can act as a reference for people to learn more about pruning and clipping. The space is small but the aspect is great and the beds are deep enough to put some plants in. …
Delivery After Dark – From the Makers of The Amelia Project
Last week I spent most nights stood in cold water streams on the moors of North Yorkshire, helping to film a new project called Delivery After Dark from the makers of the Amelia Project. I worked on the Amelia Project back at the end of 2024, lending my terrible vocal talents to a small part in the episode Didius Julianus. But this project is something new – and exciting! – and thankfully only needed me to be filmed, rather than to actually say anything. But not only did I have to stand in cold moving water at midnight, I also …
Modern Topiary (The Book) – Message From Lady Clippers, And Others!
My topiary book – Modern Topiary – has recently been put out as a PDF, which can be read for free. (Have a look here to download and read/share it!) Then last week I received a lovely email from Ann Perkowski of Lady Clippers, who are topiary and pruning specialists in New York (Ann is a brilliant pruning teacher too, who teaches at New York Botanical Garden… check out her work and Lady Clippers website.) Hi Darren, I had to write you how much I love reading your Modern Topiary. I’m not sure I’ll ever be quite done with it because I’m …