Topiary: Levens Hall & Arne Maynard

Levens Hall, The Lake District, Cumbria, was the first European study garden I visited.  I was on my way to Scotland to study historic gardens.

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Levens Hall is known for many things, especially topiary, below.

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Topiary was not off my radar, entirely, for decades.  I didn't like it. 

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Now, I get topiary.  Better late than 'nevah'.  Proof, my mistakes are never small.

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Large properties, especially, find topiary useful.  Small properties too.

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Accent, focal point, all year effect, easy to maintain, design uses are many.

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Across USA millions of homes retain their PSO's planted by the builder to satisfy mortgage loan requirements with new construction.

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PSO?  Plant Shape Only.

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Plenty of mature USA hollies are ready for topiary.

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From Levens Hall, below, a chart of some of their topiary.  What's not to like?  You get to put your mark on topiary.

Discovered the work of Arne Maynard via the internet.  Have never been to his garden, nor those he has designed.  Soon, soon...

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Knew immediately he was already where I was headed.  Deep simplicity, Nature, house architecture, wit, intelligence, deeper simplicity.  Of course, Levens Hall runs thru the fragrance of Maynard's work.

Garden & Be Well,    XO Tara

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Top pic Levens Hall, bottom pic Arne Maynard.

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The famous topiary garden at Levens Hall was laid out on axis from a bank of windows inside the home, the middle lead.   Not written anywhere, discovered during my tour.  Levens Hall has had a head gardener entering in the garden journal for almost 4 centuries.

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Life is good, have been to Levens Hall 3 times, and Arne Maynard's gardens await.  Oddly, have zero inclination to travel to international gardens at present.  Too important to design gardens and get them in the ground.