Celebrate topiary

Evergreens take on a crisp, bold look when clipped into geometric ‘living sculptures’. Levens Hall has some historic examples

Evergreens take on a crisp, bold look when clipped into geometric ‘living sculptures’

DATING BACK to the 1690s, the topiary at Levens Hall in Cumbria includes some of the oldest examples in the world. “The collection of ancient box and yew trees was created by Guillaume Beaumont – former head gardener to King James II,” explains the current head gardener, Chris Crowder, who’s worked here for 32 years.

“Our clipping year officially starts on 1 September and we try to finish all the topiary by Christmas – there are around 100 specimens. After that we start on our huge beech and yew hedges so they’re looking nice and crisp by the time the garden opens again, in April.

“I always like to clip the newer topiary specimens myself, for continuity, starting off with hand shears and creating cake stands, corkscrews, spirals and cones.

For larger pieces I’ll move on to the battery-powered clippers because it’s quicker and for the tallest hedges we hire in some hydraulic lifts for a couple of months.”

The taller of the two great umbrella yews is around 9m (30ft) high – the little circular bench around its trunk gives you some idea of its scale. “It can be quite scary trimming topiary up there,” says Chris, “especially when it’s windy and the lift is fully extended. When I first started, in 1987, we used a wooden ladder lashed to a couple of trestles!” l Levens Hall, Kendal, Cumbria, is open 5 April - 1 October 2020, Sunday to Thursday. 01539 560321; www.levenshall.co.uk

HISTORIC YEW Taxus baccata is a slow-growing hedging plant and the fact it continues to respond so well to trimming after centuries of pruning is part of its enduring appeal. Every part is poisonous (apart from the red arils) and it’s said yews were planted in church yards to discourage drovers from grazing their cattle in the burial grounds.