by Lis Friemoth
Seussify the landscape
He’d be proud of these plantings
It’s not just the way the words in the stories trip
off our tongues, or the fun represented in the exuberant
colors of the illustrations that bring smiles to our
faces. Dr. Seuss left this world an appreciation for
the surreal, an enjoyment of odd representations and
bold statements on social matters.
We should be so lucky to speak with such a creative
voice in our landscapes. If you want to give it a go,
then be bold, be daring; think like there isn’t a box.
Let’s get you started in Seussifying the landscape.
This can be achieved through topiary, which is basically
creative pruning and shearing. Using plant materials
that respond well to frequent or intense shaping make
this a fun and enjoyable garden task.
Topiaries
Topiaries look harder than they need to be. It does
take time and forethought to achieve the end shape but
a few tools and the proper plants make the task moderately
easy.
Hedging is a simple form of topiary and will get you
comfortable with the process of shearing plant material.
Think tall for traditional walls of green. Add an edge
of scallops at the top, or put windows and doors into
the body of the hedge to add some interest and fun.
From there you can add other architectural forms to
frame a view, highlight an important specimen, or enhance
the appearance of sculpture, an entrance or walkway.
If you have an opportunity to grow low to the ground,
knot gardens can be a great way to add a sinuous quality
to the landscape. They don’t have to be in straight lines,
you know. And think about rounded tops to simulate the
shape of a snake. Carve out designs or words along the
top.
Pleaching is a deciduous topiary technique found mainly
in Europe. The two separate focal points of this are
the bare trunks topped with a strongly hedged, and flat
plane of tightly sheared leaf mass — very intensive in
training and maintenance. Often used in eastern cultures,
cloud pruning consists of removing all vegetation from
the branches, leaving only the very end foliage for shaping.
Arborsculpture takes all of these topiary techniques
and then adds branch and trunk grafting, and bending
to achieve living structures — chairs, arbors, fences,
and the like. For any of these try Buxus (boxwood), Taxus
(yew), Ilex (holly), or Carpinus betulus (hophornbeam).
Add the unusual
If the hands-on shearing techniques are not your thing,
look at some plant materials that will naturally add
unusual interest in color, form, and texture. If you
want large and funky, there are always foliage and flower
choices in annuals, perennials, shrubs, and trees to
add pop during the growing season. Be sure to start them
early enough in the season to get the most out of any
annuals throughout the growing season.
Here are some suggestions:
• Amaranthus hypochondriacus (prince’s feather) — fun
annual, about 6 feet tall with outrageously sized,
upright, red flowers.
• Colocasia (black magic) — 5 to 6 feet tall, intense
purplish coloring, outlandish shape.
• Dahlias (dinner plate type) — the epitome of overstated
flowers, hugely intense color and height presentation.
• Eryngium giganteum (Miss Wilmott’s ghost) — a surprise
plant, silvery colored rough and tough spikey flowers.
• Hosta (blue angel) — very large, bluish green foliage
reaching about 4 feet in height
• Hosta (mouse ears) — a very interesting and tiny 6-inch
plant with thickly curled leaves.
• Monarda punctata (bee balm) — unusually stacked blooms
of lavender, spotted yellow and green
• Senecio (Kilimanjaro) — interesting plant — looks like
a succulent, light-colored evergreen branch on steroids.
• Xanthosoma violaceum var. maffaffa (lime zinger) or
chartreuse giant, brightly colored greens, positively
huge leaf structure.
For tree and shrub surrealism, go take a look at the
interesting beauties available out in the nurseries.
Here are some of the fun ones:
• Acer palmatum (fairyhair) — small and columnar with
wispy, hair-like foliage.
• Berberis thunbergii f. atropurpurea (Helmond Pillar)
— upright, purple, spikey.
• Caragana arborescens (pendula, Walker or Lorbergii)
— good weeping habit.
• Carpinus betulus (Vienna weeping) — full cap-like form.
• Chamaecyparis (green arrow) — up, up and away.
• Corylus avellana (contorta) — excellent choice.
• Larix decidua (horstman’s recurved) — twisty, weepy.
• Rhus typhina (tiger eyes) — unusual brightness.
• Stephanandra incisa (crispa) — small, natural, mound-like
outline.
• Styphnolobium japonicum (pendula) — pronounced, twisted
horizontal weep.
— Lis Friemoth is a horticulture diagnostician. Contact her at (262) 745-2904, P.O. Box 58, Springfield, WI 53176, visit online at www.thegardenhoe.com or e-mail her at gardenhoe@tds.net. Listen to Liz from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. every third Saturday on WISN AM1130 radio. |
