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.
Italian Translation of Modern Topiary, The Book
This is something special! Bianca Pastori, who is a keen topiarist in Italy, has produced an Italian translation of my book Modern Topiary. Some of her topiary work can be viewed in a blog post here about teaching topiary in 2026. So if you want an Italian version of Modern Topiary the book, please do download and read the free PDF below. (Yes, I do know the download button is tiny. I still haven’t worked out how to make it bigger, better and easier to click on. Doh!) For the version of Modern Topiary in the original language – English …
Modern Topiary, the Book, at Garden Media Guild
My book about topiary, Modern Topiary, has been mentioned on the Garden Media Guild newsletter…. As the screenshot says, the book can be read for free online here. At the bottom of the screenshot, it looks like another Garden Media Guild member has a book out called ‘A Year In A Cottage Garden’…. so if that is where your garden heart lies, check that out too! And at the top of the screenshot, it looks like I was listening to Pelleas et Melisande, by Debussy. What a classy chap I am, listening to classical music as I reply to emails. …
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. …