THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Over the last two years I have been involved with a couple of projects that have ended up being recorded, then placed on Youtube or Instagram.
I’m hoping they will be useful to you, so I have decided this morning to pop them together in one handy blog post so that you can bookmark the page and revisit when you need some inspiration for your topiary.
See below then, a few videos about topiary I have recently been involved with…
Garden Masterclass – Provocations of a Modern Topiarist
My Work In The Background Of This Short Clip
Transforming Topiary
Topiary Teacher Put On The Spot
https://www.instagram.com/p/CTj-EfOKRL6/
In the above video I had one hour to make a topiary, wth no thought or preparation, in front of 16 students … and teach them about it as I made it.
Especially love that at the end the students join in and help!
How To Sharpen Shears
Hope these few videos give you a little indication of my work and what topiary I can potentially make for you…!
Topiary Teaching For 2026
A new year, so time to share a few thoughts on what I will be looking at doing with topiary, and the focus on teaching I would like to put in place, for 2026 and beyond. Above is Nandina, made by a student of ours from the European Boxwood and Topiary Society. She took a year to work on this, taking a plant not renowned for being a good topiary plant, but seeing what its weirdness is and what values it does have, then exploring and exploding those. I am thrilled by this. Not just this look for autumn. A …
Topiary Workshop 2026 at Waltham Place
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 …
Michael Gibson, New York Topiary Art!
In the New York Times earlier this year was a lovely interview with Michael Gibson, who makes topiary and gardens in New York. The article is here but you may not have access… however, search the internet, find it and have a read. It is great! His philosophy of pruning is especially worth it… Sacred geometry in topiary? Yes please! What a phrase! I think (and speak) of balance, of major and minor, of leaf volume… but sacred geometry might well make it into my topiary teaching lexicon! And the idea of directional trimming? I realise I do this, but …