Not too long ago, I saw a photograph online of a reclining human figure, larger than life, totally carved out of shrubs. Garden topiary.
我被迷住了——回想起多年前,当我参观英国和法国的经典花园时,比如德比郡的查兹沃斯庄园,以及精心修剪的凡尔赛城堡。
I don’t think I could be as orderlyin my garden plans就像凡尔赛宫或其他欧洲和英国的皇家花园一样我更像是那种随性装扮的园丁。但我确实认为,在这里和那里修剪一些花园会很酷,以弥补我的花园中杂乱无序的无序。
Like maybe a shrub clipped in the shape of a dog. I actually tried that once, and my family laughed at the attempt. They thought my dog looked more like an alien. Oh well. I tried, and I will try again.
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我现在意识到,我必须要有耐心——这不是我的强项。园艺修剪是一个漫长的训练过程。特定类型的树木和灌木经过多年的训练变成人工或装饰性的形状。一些树木和灌木比其他的更好。
Apparently, the best trees to train are the box, cypress, and yew, and the best shrubs are the rosemary, holly and box honeysuckle. None of these grow well in my growing area, though I do have some holly and honeysuckle that’s far too established to cut back and start training at this late stage.
It’s interesting the art of garden topiary dates way back to the Roman era, specifically the first century. That’s the first known record of topiary, but gardeners have been creative since the beginning of gardening, so it’s quite possible the art form existed long before the first century, and the topiary artists assumed different names.
In the 18th century, this artist was often referred to as a tree barber, a tree mason, or a leafage sculptor. Garden topiary was most prevalent in Great Britain and the Netherlands where stone sculpture was more expensive to install in gardens, though in Great Britain, there are at least as many fine stone sculptures in the grand garden estates as there are topiary sculptures.
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回到我那只不太现实的花园修剪狗。也许还有另一种方式来创造我的花园,以植物为基础的雕塑?也许是一个金属框架,内衬细网以固定土壤和五彩缤纷的插花?这似乎是一种新趋势,我可以全力以赴,变得超级有创意。
The questions arise: Do I order the metal framework? Purchase it at a garden center (if they have them)? Or create my own? The end result would definitely be interesting whichever way I choose — but certainly not up to the standards of the professionals. My inspiration? A mammoth display of garden sculpture commemorating a milestone in my country’s history.
When Canada celebrated its 150thanniversary in 2017, one of the biggest tourist attractions was MosaïCanada 150 in Gatineau, Quebec. The concept presents a magical garden with 100 huge sculptures combining the infrastructure of landscape with design, sculpture, and living plants to portray a truly live art form.
Having visited some of the grandest gardens in Great Britain and Europe, and admired their unique garden topiary shrubs, I was still unprepared for the overall awe factor that greeted me when entering the grounds of MosaïCanada 150. Huge figures of animals, ships, trains — anything and everything that defined Canada’s vibrant history, larger than life and covered in nature’s finest shrubs and flowers. It was breathtaking.
Of course, I wanted to take some of this creativity home with me and add it to my garden. Those of you who follow my posts know I like to dream big where my garden is concerned.
I may never get to the point where I have larger than life-size plant sculptures (given my limited garden space) but a few smaller examples will add a unique sense of pizzazz. So, even if my dog art doesn’t really look like a dog, it will blend admirably into my rustic, make-it-up-as-you-go gardens. Worth a try.
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