Topiary is the name given to the art of cutting and training of herbs, shrubs or trees into decorative shapes. This shaping of plants to look like formal scupture, or occasionally, whimsical ornaments, is very much associated with elaborate European gardens. Regaining their popularity in the world of gardening, topiaries can be used outside as a central feature in the courtyard, as a focal point or as a warm welcome at the entrance to a home. It may look complicated, but in fact, creating your own topiary is rather easy - it just takes some careful clipping and a lot of patience! And although it is easier to buy and look after an ready-made topiary, the fun and satisfaction of making your own is priceless. There are quite a number of plants that do well as topiaries, and many herbs can successfully be trained into the shape you want - lavender, scented pelargoniums, santolina, myrtle, bay and rosemary are favourites. In this article we will look at the basics of creating a lollipop (ball-standard) rosemary topiary. What you need Young potted herb Gardening scissors Bamboo stake Plant ties Patience (at l;east a year from starting your topiary before seeing clear results) Step 1: Choosing Choose a young potted plant that has an unpinched leader. This may not be an easy find as most nurseries pinch the top growth point in order for the plants to branch out and grow more bushy. Step 2: Potting Once you have found your herb plant, transplant it into the pot that you would ultimately like it to be settled in once it is a topiary (this is not strictly necessary as you can work with the plant in its growing pot as well, but as it grows, it may need transplanting to allow for more root growth, so why not transplant it at the beginning of the exercise?) Step 3: Growing Allow the herb to grow straight up until it is at the height that you would like it to be (for a small indoor topiary, as little as 20cm would be enough, but for a large outdoor topiary, let the plant grow at least 60 to 90cm). Step 4: Staking Support the growth of the herb by placing a stake beside it and tie the herb to the stake ensuring that the ties don't injure the herb - check them often as the stem widens as the plant grows. Take care to choose a stake that is at least as tall as the plant will be once it is fully grown. Step 5: Trim away While the herb grows to its desired height, trim away any side shoots that try to grow in order to encourage skyward growth. Allow leaves to stay on the main trunk. Step 6: Feeding & Rotating Feed your herb after every fifth watering to encourage active growth. Also make sure that you rotate your plant often so that all parts get equal amount of sunlight - this ensures a straighter growth. Step 7: Pinch the tip When the plant has reached its desired growth, pinch out the tip of the herb and permit three pairs of branches to grow. You can at this stage also strip the leaves off the main trunk where you are sure you don't want them to be. (If you want more than one "ball" on your topiary, remove all leaves above and below areas you've selected to be the balls). Remember that the trunk may still elongate a bit as it matures and thickens, but there won't be much active upward growth - all the energy will now be sent into sideways stems. Step 8: Train This is the interesting part where you will train the herb to grow in the direction you want it to grow by pinching the new growing tips every few centimeters. Pinching or cutting these nodes will encourage new shoots to grow in the direction you want it to. For a ball topiary, remember to encourage width and branching at the base of the "head". Top growth will develop faster, so keep upward growing shoots trimmed. Keep cutting off undesired sidebranches that may appear on the main stem. As you begin to understand it's growth habits you will be able to make your herb topiary grow in the shape you want. Step 9: Maintenance Now that you have the start of your topiary, the rest is just maintenance - continue to prune the ball of leaves so that it gradually contours into a perfect shape. (Remember you can use clippings to create new plants easily!) If you want to go as far, you can also prune the roots of your topiary, if this is not done, after a few years, the plant may stop flowering and the leaves may turn yellow. Just nip the sides of the root ball along the edges. Step 10: Enjoy! You can "prettify" your standard if you wish by planting a groundcover herb along its base - creeping thyme is a splendid choice for a rosemary topiary as the plants like the same growing conditions. Enjoy your herb topiary and feel proud of creating such a stunning garden element from scratch!