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Bush cutting: 95 photos of decorative curly shrub pruning

Landscaping of the plot is one of the options for decorating the infield. To do this, it makes sense to create a hedge that, with proper care, will delight the eye throughout the season. Care is carried out by cutting and pruning, giving the hedge a certain shape.

As an aid, you can view collections of photos of bush haircuts that are distinguished by their special beauty and originality. In addition, you should know when and how to carry out pruning and shearing, what tools will be needed for this.

Decorative trimming of bushes, its other name "topiary", traces its history back to ancient Egypt and Persia. The full spread of this type of landscape art takes place in the 15th century. It was then that beautifully trimmed hedges became the decoration not only of the French Versailles, but also of most palace gardens in Europe.

History knows a decline in interest in decorative haircuts, but today topiary is very popular around the world. We are talking about both professionals and amateurs who strive to give an individual look to their own site.


A tandem of trees with a lush crown and clearly designed figures has become fashionable, which is considered the prerogative of the British style. Mature bushes and trees are already being processed.

Nuances of haircuts

Topiary art implies painstaking work in search of a unique style. It is worth noting that not every kind of trees or shrubs is suitable for decorative decoration.

Every amateur gardener who wants to develop his own style can try his hand at the following plants:

  • boxwood is a poisonous ornamental shrub that requires cutting twice a year;
  • dogwood is a slow–growing shrub, optimal for creating any shapes, but requiring frequent haircuts;
  • holly is an excellent plant with thorns at the ends of the leaves;
  • yew – the care resembles boxwood.

To work, you should get a special tool: a pruner, scissors for cutting bushes, a hacksaw, a garden knife, a knot cutter. New shoots are cut with a knife, branches are cut with a pruner, a crown can be formed with scissors, a knot cutter will allow cutting deep-growing branches, and a hacksaw will be useful for sawing off thick branches.

Professionals do not recommend beginners to immediately take up tricky figures when creating topiary. It is better to try elementary shapes – a ball, an oval or a cone.

Moreover, the work begins with the preparation of a sketch in order to clearly imagine the final result. Another prerequisite is that the working tool must be well sharpened.

Preparatory work in the absence of plantings on the site should be reduced to planting spruce and juniper. Planting is carried out in early spring, or in autumn, so that the plants have time to take root before winter. Between the trees it is worth maintaining a distance of 80 cm. After a year, the plants will grow enough to be able to proceed with the design.

An innovation in topiary is the use of steel frames that allow you to create more complex hedge options, since garden shears for cutting bushes are still the basic tool.


Complex figures are the result of many years of work, and experienced gardeners understand this perfectly, knowing that the final result, with proper work, will exceed all expectations. He will have a special perfection and will be able to please any beholder.

Creating a complex figure involves going through several stages. First, a special pre-prepared frame made of metal rods or wire, which has the desired shape, is put on the young plant.

The growth of the plant leads to the fact that the branches and leaves begin to go out of the frame. This process should be carefully monitored and pruned, despite the fact that elsewhere in the structure the plant may not yet go beyond the boundaries of the frame. For several years, the bush will actively grow, all this time it needs to be given the necessary shape by pruning.

After the plant reaches the desired shape, the frame is dismantled, and the gardener continues to maintain it, constantly carrying out curly bush cutting.

Rules and guidelines for the hairstyle

To create an original design and improve your site, you should have a clear idea of how to carry out a haircut. For example, hardwood trees need to be trimmed once, preferably in the spring, ahead of the budding period. The crown of deciduous trees will increase its volumes by 5-10 cm thanks to last year's branches.

As for hedges, curly shrubs, they need to be cut several times per season. The number of haircuts depends on the type of plant itself. The first haircut is done in early spring, while leaving 5 cm of last year's growth. All remaining seasonal haircuts are equal to the first one, trying not to go beyond the specified level of circumcision.

In order to avoid the loss of needles by the lower part of coniferous hedges, pruning the sides should not be done strictly vertically. It is necessary to make sure that the fence gradually narrows to the upper part.


Whatever the type of plant, coniferous or deciduous, the haircut should be done according to the following scheme: start from the bottom and continue upwards. In addition, plants need to be nourished with cool water and fed with special vitamins. You can prevent the bush from drying out by leaving several live buds on it.

Topiary art professionals give some tips on how to take care of bushes and trees. Abundant pruning of young plantings with special scissors for cutting bushes and grass will subsequently achieve lush vegetation. Such scissors cut grass and leaves along the entire length of the working blades.

There are also scissors with an elongated handle that allow you to cut the lawn vertically and process the hedge without using a stepladder.

A pruner or a garden knife will also come in handy, since young plants need a special cut. To achieve the appearance of new shoots, you can cut young plants 15 cm above the ground. Finally, the ability to create an excellent hedge is determined by the rational use of several plant species at once.

Maintaining the decorative appearance of a hedge implies mandatory shearing and circumcision procedures. The experience that comes with time will allow any gardener to have well-developed and well-groomed plants on his site, as well as to achieve original landscape solutions in the issue of landscaping the territory.

Photos of the process of cutting bushes