THE MODERN MINT BLOG
A simple blog post today – we offer you a vocabulary to use when looking at ways to prune creatively, then at the end link to places you can buy tools and read more about the work of some of the key players in the pruning world.
We hope this vocabulary is useful though – as you never know when you might need to explain the difference between a wibble and a twmp – it may help sell the idea to a client, or unwilling family member who thinks you should just leave that tree well alone…
A Shape and Clipping Vocabulary
Blobs
Balls
Squares
Cubes
Rectangles
Dice
Domes
Cones
Spirals
Crenellation – a space between two merlons in a battlement wall.
Puddings
Multi-stem
Standards
Spheres
Buttresses
Windows
Arches
Wedding Cake
Boxes
Parasol
Goblet
Drumstick
Helter Skelters
Teardrops
Kidneys
Clouds
Rockets
Pyramids
Merlons – the upright bit in a castle fort (see crenallation… or google ‘crenels…) An archer may have peered through it to fire arrows.
Carbuncles
Parterre – a more formal topiary arrangement than a bump, say…
Doughnuts
Bumps
Parachutes
Niches
Batter – sloped side on a hedge, where the bottom is wider than the top allowing light to reach the whole height of the hedge.
Eggs
Slabs
Planes
Broccolli
Peacocks
Humps
Lumps
Bells
Bolls
Tunnels
Candles
Tumpties
Mushrooms
Onions
Liberty caps
Nipples
Espalier
Pleached
Niwaki – meaning ‘garden tree’ – Niwaki: Pruning, Training and Shaping Trees the Japanese Way
Pollarded
Stilts
Stooled
Raised
Layed
Coppiced
Hedge – double, triple…
Flailed
Thinned
Animals
Chess Pieces
Top Hats
Russian Dolls
Plinths
Soldiers
Castles
Faces
Organic
Karikomi – one plant repeated in a great mass… for great effect…
Flat
Semi-flat
Poodle
Pompom
Furniture
Nursery & Topiary Specialists
Jake Hobson – sells tools here at Niwaki, and his books are here at Amazon.
Nicky Fraser – graffiti artist using hedges. Brilliant stuff!
Charlotte Molesworth – It’s the shape of things to come.
Architectural Plants – where we first heard the term Niwaki.
Earlstone Box and Topiary – field grown box plants near where we lived in Hampshire.
Langley Boxwood – where we sourced little used Buxus ‘Herrenhausen’, a tiny leaved box…
European Boxwood and Topiary Society – publishers of the wonderful Topiarius magazine and brilliant starting place to learn about all things box. Modern Mint are proud to be members!
Tool Vocabulary
We hope this glossary of terms helps you put into words what you are trying to do when you clip. It is, much like the act of pruning, an organic artifact that is growing all the time as new people take up a pair of shears and begin to shape the plants around them.
We hope that you have a go this year, and can help add another word to the growing vocabulary of the pruner!
Beekeepers – Quick Notes On Plants For Bees
Fine news for beekeepers today – a total ban on bee-harming pesticides has been announced! To celebrate, here is a list of plants we recommend as being brilliant for the bees: Helenium Sedum Echium vulgare Marjoram or Oregano Eupatorium (common name? Joe Pye-Weed. But don’t let that put you off!) Borage Nepeta Veronicastrum Teucrium Bonus plants for shady spots? Try hellebore, lamium and pulmonaria. Looking for a shrub to plant near your apiary? Phillyrea ought to do it. Although it is difficult to get hold of…. we are working on making it more available though, so check back with Modern …
Thoughts On Modern Mint, April 2018
Hey Modern Minters, we have been busy already this year – so busy! Here is some of the topiary work we love doing so much…. A post shared by ModernMint (@modernmintshop) on Apr 5, 2018 at 9:48am PDT Whilst evenings (and some afternoons!) have been spent travelling the country giving garden talks to clubs, horticultural societies, WI’s and U3A’s. This is all fabulous fun but it has meant: We have not been consistent with our mailing list I have not finished the book ‘Helping The Honeybee’ I was due to get to the publisher by the end of February There …
Helping The Honeybee, Southend On Sea Beekeepers
This week I gave a talk – Helping The Honeybee – to the lovely beekeeping group at Southend on Sea. Here are some notes for those who didn’t have a chance to write down some of the ideas we spoke about and shared…. The Top Plants For Bees Helenium Sedum Echium Marjoram (which you will find in your seedballs) Oregano Eupatorium, also known as Joe Pye-Weed Borage Nepeta Veronicaastrum Teucrium Phillyrea If you want a hedge for around your apiary, you will not go too far wrong with planting the amazing, tough as old boots, Phillyrea. Read plenty more about …