Tip
If you want to use your garden waste sustainably, you can plant the cuttings in damp soil and let them root. This will give you more boxwood bushes for your garden.
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Boxwood topiary: how to cut a box hedge
Cutting your box hedge into a shape will create a beautiful and unique feature for your garden. Our article explains how to shape a boxwood topiary step by step.
04.12.2024
Overview: boxwood topiary
- Artfully trimming box bushes is a popular way of creating a feature in your garden
- Cordless shrub shears and secateurs ideal for shaping
- Use a wire frame to help trim your boxwood from its original natural shape
- Maintain the existing ball using a cardboard template
- Boxwood cuttings can be propagated and planted
The best time to shape a boxwood is during the growing season from May to the end of August.
The easiest way to shape a boxwood is with battery hedge trimmers or shrub shears, and sharp secateurs for precision work. The following rule of thumb applies: the more delicate you wish to make the boxwood during shaping, the shorter the shears you need.
How often you should trim a boxwood depends on the shape you want. With simple shapes, such as a ball or pyramid, trimming once or twice a year is sufficient, while elaborate animal figures will only remain detailed and in shape with frequent cutting. Boxwood can be trimmed every 4 to 6 weeks in such cases.
The right shape for your boxwood
Balls, cones, spirals... trimming boxwood into 3D shapes has enduring popularity. Topiary, the art of trimming trees and bushes into shapes, is a great way to enhance gardens and terraces. Cutting to shape is also popular in hedge trimming.
If you don’t fancy ending up suddenly responsible for an entire ornate Baroque garden, you can simply trim a few individual plants or potted bushes into shape and use these as strategically placed features.
We explain step-by-step how to trim a box bush, and set out what tools you need to do the job.
Time for topiary
Depending on the size of the plant, it may take a few years to get it to the size you need. To promote strong growth, you should trim your boxwood during the growing season from May to late August. Regular pruning is also necessary for bushes that have already been shaped, with frequency depending on their growth.
Boxwood should generally be cut back two to three times a year: first in May, then at the end of June, and again in August, depending on how dense you need it to be for the planned shape. With regular trimming and boxwood care, your beautiful topiary is sure to delight you for a long time to come.
Preparation: trimming a boxwood into a ball shape
To succeed in shaping your box bush, you will need the right tools and a few helpful utensils – we explain what you should have ready before starting!
Working with high-performance power tools is fun and allows you to broaden your skills, which is great if you can rely on effective and safe protective clothing. Always wear personal protective equipment when working with garden pruners. This includes, for example,safety glasses, gloves and more. Find out more in the operating instructions for your product. Before using your power tool for the first time, fully familiarise yourself with it and ensure that it is in flawless condition before each use. On request, your STIHL dealer will be happy to prepare your power tool for its first job, and will also advise you on models and sizes of protective clothing that you can try on at your leisure. Please remember that personal protective equipment is no substitute for working safely.
Get in shape with the right tools
Boxwood topiary: a guide
We go through two possibilities when shaping a boxwood topiary: using a wire frame to guide you in creating a clean shape from an untrimmed boxwood, and utilising a home-made cardboard template which is ideal for maintaining an already-shaped bush.
How to shape an untrimmed plant
An untrimmed boxwood bush offers wonderful opportunities for shaping. First, we will tell you how to trim a boxwood that has never been shaped.
First, you need to start by making a wire frame. Take the tension wire and, depending on the plant size, bend four or more pieces of wire to roughly form the circumference of the planned ball. Remove any protruding wire as you go.
Before you start to trim, insert all the pieces of wire into the soil in such a way that they converge above the plant, forming a dome.
Connect the wires together with a cable tie or piece of wire; leave the wire frame in place until your plant sufficiently fills it. Now you need to wait while your boxwood grows and thrives.
Once the box has grown enough, use the hedge trimmer to remove any protruding shoots that have grown out. Take a methodical approach and make sure that you create a geometric shape.
Once you have resolved any remaining irregularities, you can remove the crown. You can keep the ball at its current size or allow it to increase in size over time.
STIHL tip: You should cover your freshly shaped boxwood with fleece for about two days to protect it from the sun.
How to maintain the shape of an existing ball
Once you have trimmed your boxwood into the shape you want, you should use a template to retrim it regularly, so that it will remain beautiful in the long term. We explain how to do this in the following guide.
Place the plant on a table for trimming. Remember to place an old sheet or tablecloth underneath it to catch the cuttings as you trim. This will make it easier to take them for composting later. For plants that are growing outside, cut the cloth from the edge to the middle and then lay it on the ground around the plant.
Carefully measure the circumference you want for your plant in order to prepare the shaping template in the next step.
Now take a piece of string half the length of the diameter you have measured; use this to help you draw a semicircle on a piece of cardboard. Then cut out the semicircle – your tailor-made boxwood template is ready!
Position the cardboard template on the plant and cut the boxwood to match the template using the HSA 26. As you trim, push the cardboard along gradually, adjusting the angle of approach so that you also reach the lower sections. To do this, tilt the cardboard by 90 degrees. It is worth allowing plenty of time for shaping the boxwood and checking progress regularly, as this will ultimately make all the difference to the final appearance.
Remove the cardboard and look at the plant from a distance to spot any possible outliers. Shake the cuttings from the plant as these might obstruct your view. Remove any remaining outliers with the secateurs until your boxwood is beautifully spherical again. Protect your boxwood from sunlight immediately after shaping by covering it with thin fleece for about two days.
STIHL tip: How about cutting a boxwood into a spiral or cone shape for a bit of variety? Use bamboo canes as a frame for a cone shape, tying them together at the top with wire or cable ties to form a tepee. A length of ribbon can make a useful orientation aid when cutting a boxwood topiary spiral shape.
Topiary: the right equipment
Good tools are indispensable for successful shaping. Our STIHL battery shrub shears and secateurs will help you shape any boxwood bush beautifully.
Because our shears are designed for professionals, they are suitable for effortless continuous use – including in shaping bushes in your own garden. The tools are comfortable to hold and ideal for precise, demanding work.
Remember: larger shrub shears are also good for coarse shaping, while handy secateurs with smaller cutting edges are more suitable for fine work.
You should clean and sharpen your shears regularly to ensure you can enjoy using them for years to come.
To keep cordless shrub and hedge trimmers in perfect condition for years, you should clean the blades with a damp cloth after each use, spray them with STIHL Superclean and allow them to run for a short time – this will make sure that corrosion and sticky plant residues don’t stand a chance.
Legal considerations
In order to protect breeding and nesting sites, the German Federal Nature Conservation Act (Bundesnaturschutzgesetz) prohibits extensive hedge cutting between 1 March and 30 September. You must not cut back bushes or other shrubs during this time. Minor maintenance and shaping are permitted and will not harm the environment.
