Living Plant Screening, Arches, Panels and Espaliers
Agrumi designs and creates Bespoke Garden Features from their custom made topiary workshop.
We start by building a steel framework in the style and size of your choice. We then train the plants’ stems, branches and foliage over the framework.
We are able to create the structure to your design specification.
Living Plant Screening
Living plant screening is usually a row of panels covered in plant foliage, which act like a hedge, in the fraction of the space. These are especially popular in urban areas where space is at a premium. These are made to measure, so that they fit perfectly in your space. A group of panels make great instant screening. Instead of using a tall fence to create privacy, plant covered panels create a soft looking screen that also lets light in
Unlike a wall or fence, a hedge filters the wind and calms it, which leads to improved air circulation and the formation of a sheltered micro-climate. In the garden, this gives better growing conditions as a result of warmer soil.
Arches
Archways can really add the 'wow' factor to a garden, as they lead you into a new area of the property, or frame a particular view of the garden space. Arches can be made with flexibility on the width and depth.
Could Agrumi help you with a Bespoke Garden Feature? Contact us for a quote!
Panels
Panels can be used singly or in a group to create a screening effect. You might want to hide an unattractive feature. We don't all have great views from every window and a screening panel can block the view of rubbish bins, washing lines, compost heaps, or ugly buildings. This is particularly useful if you need a high screen, when the cost implications of walls and fences becomes even more persuasive in favour of a plant covered panel.
Espaliers and Pleached Trees
Metal frameworks can even be secured onto trees, to create a pleached effect. This is a really popular option for those that want to add height to an existing fence. A group pleached trees offers extra privacy, almost acting like a hedge suspended above the fence line. A benefit of choosing a pleached tree over a very tall fence, is that you do not lose the light, while benefitting from more privacy.
Your choice of plants...including Star Jasmine and Eleagnus
Our most popular choice of plant for our Garden Features is Star Jasmine – Trachelospermum jasminoides. Star Jasmine is an evergreen plant, so it offers a full coverage of leaves throughout the year. During the Summer it is covered in white flowers, which boast an amazing fragrance. Walking through an archway made from Star Jasmine is a lovely way to experience the smell! It is great for pollinators too as the flowers are rich in nectar, which is ideal for lots of bees and butterflies.
Other plant choices include Eleagnus, which is also an evergreen plant. The leaves will stay in place all year around, so you'll have the screening effect in all seasons. The leaves mature to a lustrous green, but always retain their silvery undersides. In autumn, very small, but well-scented, creamy-white flowers open, filling the air with their delicious perfume. The foliage makes an excellent backdrop for showier ornamental plant. It is fully hardy that also tolerates shade, dry soil and salt-laden coastal winds.
Planting a panel of Eleagnus creates an instant hedge effect in a fraction of the space.
Could Agrumi help you with a Bespoke Garden Feature? Contact us for a quote!
Here at Agrumi, topiary animals are a popular item. We've made a huge range of animal topiary; from dogs to cats, woodland creatures to farm animals, and even Jurassic Dinosaurs! We can make any topiary animal bespoke, life size, miniature or exaggerated.
If you have something special in mind we'll be able to accommodate; after a particular breed, size, set of animals or even mythical creatures, just let us know what you're after and we'll bring it to life!
If you're looking for something to entice the crowds, via logos, names, signs or sculpture, topiary signage can be a highly effective means of promoting your company image while encouraging a green, friendly message, with a welcoming breath of fresh air!
We're often asked approached by people who require topiary pieces made up in a hurry or for low maintenance ever lasting installations. For this kind of project, when there isn't enough time for our standard Ligustrum to fluff up, our range of artificial topiary products are ideal to achieve that instant wow factor.
In artificial products we have up to five products to choose from; artificial boxwood matting, artificial grass, dried dyed moss or bare bones/LED covered topiary frames.
Artificial boxwood matting can be very effective if you’re looking for a realistic plastic alternative to living plants. We use a variety with deep ‘foliage’ and tonal shades of green which replicate the real thing. It's suitable for long-term outdoor use, sturdy, light to carry and weather-resistant; providing an instant ever lasting wow-factor that can be used time and again.
Namgrass, a near neighbour to Agrumi in the New Forest, just so happen to be Britain’s premier supplier ofartificial grass; making it the perfect partner for Agrumi’s topiary skills to provide light weight, portable, low maintenance topiary figures. With artificial grass you can have great looking topiary instantly that doesn’t require any further care.
Dried moss topiary figures can be made as a green natural alternative to living topiary that we use to create fuller looking products in an instant; producing healthy looking, soft topiary which requires very little maintenance.
And, of course, we can supply all of our topiary figures in their most basic wire frame form; perfect if you’re thinking of trying your hand at training your own topiary plant. Or, alternatively, we offer a fantastic sculpture covering in the form of LED lights. This combination of LED lights and our wire frame sculptures creates a beautiful effect that will joyfully light up the night!
If you need a hedge but haven’t got time to wait for it to grow, and you don’t want to worry about trimming and watering all summer, then you’ve found the perfect solution - Agrumi’s Artificial Hedging.
Not so long ago fake foliage looked terrible, but these days you have to touch it to find out whether it’s real or not.
This means you can now add a touch of class and colour to your space and have it looking great all year round.
Our craftsmen have made bespoke artificial hedges for theme parks, retail spaces, outdoor gardens and more and we’re waiting to make a hedge for you.
Request a Free No Obligation Estimate
First of all, get in touch with us. Together we will discuss the requirements of your project and give you a free no obligation quotation.
We hand make your artificial hedges to your custom specifications. At the center of the hedge is a steel frame - for stability, strength and rigidity. The frame can be designed to fit into a choice of planter or directly into the ground.
The frame is then covered in the most realistic looking foliage available. Your fake hedge will look like a real hedge.
Typically this process takes around 2-3 weeks (though we can also do express jobs if needed) We will advise you of the lead time before you confirm the order.
Once we have completed the build we will deliver the hedges by pallet or dedicated vehicle, depending on the size and quantity of hedging units.
Request a Free No Obligation Estimate
Request a Free No Obligation Estimate
Request a Free No Obligation Estimate
Normally bright sunlight can cause irreparable damage and colour loss to artificial foliage, but not with our hedging. We use foliage that can withstand constant prolonged exposure to bright sunlight and extreme heat, nullifying its damaging effect. Laboratory tests show that you can store our artificial hedging outdoors permanently without having to worry about UV degradation. Your artificial hedging will continue to look great for years to come.
All our hedging is handbuilt by us at our workshop in the New Forest. If you need a bespoke fit for your space, or require curved hedges and unusual angles, then we will build something especially for you.
Request a Free No Obligation Estimate
Size is no object for Agrumi topiary. Whether for an event or just advertisement, giant-topiary can be an eye-catching and unusual way to draw in the crowds.
We recently completed our first international topiary commission against formidable competition! In just 10 days we designed, constructed and delivered a 3 metre high topiary teddy bear sculpture to a municipal project in Belgium; the impressive bear now features on a prominent roundabout site and is being enjoyed by thousands of people as they drive by on their daily commutes.
This two-metre high giant topiary shoe was commissioned by Rain Communications to launch a week-long fashion and floral-themed festival in London.
The design was based on a pair of similarly formed denim stiletto shoes purchased by Lady Gaga from Lungta de Fancy in St Christopher’s Place, near Oxford Street, and was made in just two weeks.
The local traders wanted to commemorate the celebrity visit; what better way than through the art of topiary!
We can make topiary letters and numbers in any size, two or three-dimensional, in a choice of living Ligustrum, Star Jasmine, or, alternatively, using dyed dried moss or artificial materials.
Perfect for promoting a green environmentally friendly image, be it your company name in giant three-dimensional letters, planted outside your office for promotion or an event, we can make attractive signage to promote your business or welcome people to your event/property.
Or, alternatively, if it's a special occasion such as someone's birthday, anniversary, wedding or just an event in someone specials life, why not have us create a beautiful design of their name, initials, age or a special message to commemorate the occasion in beautiful living topiary that can be planted in the ground as a permanent living memento?
We recently made some topiary letters against the clock on behalf of BBC Entertainment which were displayed at the British Embassy in Oslo in honour of the Queen's Official Birthday. We were more than happy with the result; using Star Jasmine as our plant of choice we were able to produce good looking topiary in a matter of days. You can watch a video of how we did it here.
Underneath every one of Agrumi’s beautiful topiary pieces - whether made from living plants, grass, moss or artificial boxwood - lies a sculptural frame fashioned by hand from thin metal rods. Our gifted and imaginative team use their skills to craft these robust structures so they are capable of withstanding the plant weaving process, yet detailed enough to show the characteristic features of the design below. The frames can be bought ‘off the shelf’ from one of our existing designs, or made completely bespoke to your own ideas. We also make topiary frames, to any size, suitable for the horticultural techniques of training plants into pleached, espalier, arched, or caged designs.
Minus the plants woven around the sculptures, Agrumi’s topiary frames are equivalent to works of art. The physical manipulation of material to form sculpture dates back to prehistoric times. Today the signature of a particular artist on a sculpture can command huge prices. Of course we’re not saying that Agrumi’s topiary frames are in the same league as art by Anish Kapoor, yet in their own way they catch the eye and prompt the viewer into a response – be it admiration for the modeling, appreciation of the skill involved in the fabrication or simply a recognition that it captures something authentic about the character of the figure portrayed.
Surely the reason why a piece of art is covetable is that it is distinctive and individual? The buyer pays for the time and effort the artist has contributed and in return expects to own something that is an exclusive one-off: an object that no one else has. Agrumi’s topiary frames offer a similar experience for comparatively little expense. Each frame is not just a commodity manufactured through a soulless production line; our frames are special. Each one is unique precisely because it is handmade. This means that no two frames are identical – even when they are constructed to the same physical dimensions and design. Each frame has quirks and idiosyncrasies that make it stand out from its peers.
The fabrication process used by our team have been tried and tested over years of experimentation. Our senior topiary artist Luigi was originally from Northern Italy. He started work as an apprentice in the furniture-making industry for which his country is rightfully known as a world leader. Chairs and sofas need to be constructed from frames that are sturdy and durable, yet exhibit appealing aesthetic qualities when they are covered in fabric or leather. The process of attaching the covering to the frame beneath is also a skilled job where a true artisan can excel if they have an eye for detail, patience and dexterity of hand.
These accomplishments are not so very different from the techniques needed for topiary making. Recognising this, Luigi saw an opportunity to offer his natural aptitude and acquired skills to some of the many agricultural nurseries that abound in Northern Italy where topiary is an important part of the stock ranges. He also welcomed the chance to give his creative flair free reign outside the factory environment where he was previously employed.
Ever on the look out for new and interesting product lines to offer Agrumi’s customers, our Director Stanley Jackson routinely sources some stock from the Northern Italian specialists. Having lived in the area for years and speaking fluent Italian, he views it as a second home where he can obtain high quality plants at wholesale prices to pass on as savings to his customers. While there, Stanley came into contact with Luigi, a friendship was formed and, seeing a new opportunity for his unique skills, Luigi moved to the UK. We have been very lucky to benefit from his talent – expertise that he is now passing on to others at our New Forest nursery.
Our topiary frames make wonderful stand-alone sculptures in a garden, landscape or home. Imagine the impression among family, friends and other visitors when they see one of our designs displayed to optimum effect in your personal space. Picture the delight of children encountering a family of elephants trailing across your lawn or a group of hares racing and boxing.
Our topiary frames can also be used to enhance exhibition spaces and communicate business and PR messages in a playful yet sophisticated way. A golfer outside a golf club; a horse outside a stud or stables; a car on a dealer’s forecourt: all these things advertise what your business is about clearly, but the message is upmarket and subtle. Look at the photographs on this page and you’ll appreciate creativity behind the replication of a life-size racehorse in steel, the capturing of the cheeky personality of a little terrier dog, the elegant sophistication of a stiletto shoe or the latent power of a Harley Davidson.
Each of our topiary frames also offers a master class in the application of precision engineering and three-dimensional modelling. For people purchasing our frames for display purposes we increase the amount of metal detailing to ensure that as much fine detail as possible is achieved. The frames can be purchased galvanized or un-galvanized giving you the option of letting your new sculpture rust gracefully outside as it ages or of resisting corrosion from the elements. Inside of course, our frames retain their pristine looks.
Traditionalists more interested in the artistic attractions of clipped topiary than the substructures beneath, might be intrigued by the creative challenge of fashioning their own topiary sculpture from scratch. If you buy a frame, pot and plant from us separately, we’ll show you how to put the three together to make a stunning topiary focal point in your own mini Versailles. Creating a natural wonder out of steel and plants is skilled work, but with Agrumi’s know-how behind you it won’t be impossible to achieve. We’ll be there whenever you need help and advice on precision pruning.
Give our team a call on 01590 683487 to order a topiary frame today.
Here at Agrumi our speciality is in Bespoke Topiary, however, we also supply many classic architectural topiary shapes.
We can offer balls, cones, pyramids, spirals and standards, all at very competitive prices. We supply them in a wide range of plant species; including Common Box, Conifer, the deciduous shrubs (Euonymus and Photinia) and the evergreen shrubs Ilex (of which Holly is one variety), Ligustrum (Privet) and Taxus.
We also have some beautiful specimen Cloud and Pom Pom-trained trees at the nursery; grown in a variety of species and sizes they make fantastic feature plants, placed in a prominent place they can gracefully enhance your garden design.
If you see something you like or have a particular request, don't hesitate to ask, we make classic topiary in all manner of shapes and sizes.
Another popular use of topiary is to transform all manner of transport into a green expression of nature. We can make topiary transport models of almost any type, specification or details; such as the Hyundai Car we made, celebrating the first production model Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicle, the ix35.
Be it a plane, car, bike, boat or train, our sculptor works to any specification, scale and model, to bring them as close to life as possible; from F1 cars to a full-size horse and carriage, we've made all kinds of transport in topiary!
