The Kindest Cut

I do love topiary. I have an area in my own garden  we pretentiously call “The Topiary Allee”, which, for future generations, will no doubt be quite impressive. Currently, I fear  my topiary are what Edward Gorey would call objects of pity on the lawn.  No matter. I faithfully go after my little tamaracks with the clippers, picturing the  balls and birds  which will some day disport themselves whimsically across my garden. In the meantime, I take note of how they do things in Paris.

The French are totally into clipping trees. They are kind of out of control.

 It can look kind of spooky. Gothic. Skeletal.

 You get these interesting nobs on the branches.

 In addition to pollarding, they also limb up, creating really tidy shrubberies.

 Tidy as heck. This kind of hedge-on-a-stick look is everywhere, but not in leaf yet in Paris (thanks to apartmentinparis.wordpress.com for the image). I guess it’s a question of how far from nature do you want to go. I find bonsai a bit too far, for example. Poor little trees, with their roots like bound feet in the tiny pots. I think we need to revisit this issue when things leaf out. Is it possible to go too far with this? 

Maybe.