We-are-all-mad-here
Mad Topiary Dreams
Howdy Gardeners,
I am a solo lawn putterer who has run into a problem google can’t solve. So, I have mad topiary dreams: like animal topiary level of madness. I also have a majestic ancient live oak towering above my 3-story Queen Anne house, which provides glorious shade from the Florida heat and endless free mulch in the form of leaves and Spanish moss, but also makes for challenging gardening.
I did my research and settled on boxwood and Eugenia Uniflora as shade-inhabiting topiary bushes. I ordered a few tiny sprigs from a nursery and decided to wait a couple years to see how they did.
I believe this is the third year. Growth has been pretty slow. I didn’t use any fertilizer, just layers and layers of leaf mulch. The boxwood is small, but plush. Some of the Eugenia look plush, but others are pretty straggly. The tallest one in particular is sadly sparse: it’s just got one central stem. I guess that would be ideal for ball topiary but I wanna make a hippocampus. I trim the ends to get branching where I can, but can’t compensate for the single stem.
Is there anything that can be done to plush out these plants? Like should I cut the whole thing off low down and hope for more branching? Should I plant more bushes close around them? I can’t find an answer to this specific problem for this specific plant on google.
Also the boxwoods: should I let them grow freely until big enough to shape into dolphins, or will they grow better/plusher if I keep them groomed into a ball or something until they’re big?
I’m feeling pretty stuck and would really appreciate advice, if anyone would be good enough to share their time and expertise.
I am a solo lawn putterer who has run into a problem google can’t solve. So, I have mad topiary dreams: like animal topiary level of madness. I also have a majestic ancient live oak towering above my 3-story Queen Anne house, which provides glorious shade from the Florida heat and endless free mulch in the form of leaves and Spanish moss, but also makes for challenging gardening.
I did my research and settled on boxwood and Eugenia Uniflora as shade-inhabiting topiary bushes. I ordered a few tiny sprigs from a nursery and decided to wait a couple years to see how they did.
I believe this is the third year. Growth has been pretty slow. I didn’t use any fertilizer, just layers and layers of leaf mulch. The boxwood is small, but plush. Some of the Eugenia look plush, but others are pretty straggly. The tallest one in particular is sadly sparse: it’s just got one central stem. I guess that would be ideal for ball topiary but I wanna make a hippocampus. I trim the ends to get branching where I can, but can’t compensate for the single stem.
Is there anything that can be done to plush out these plants? Like should I cut the whole thing off low down and hope for more branching? Should I plant more bushes close around them? I can’t find an answer to this specific problem for this specific plant on google.
Also the boxwoods: should I let them grow freely until big enough to shape into dolphins, or will they grow better/plusher if I keep them groomed into a ball or something until they’re big?
I’m feeling pretty stuck and would really appreciate advice, if anyone would be good enough to share their time and expertise.