I used to work in Hammersmith on the Fulham Palace Road, and often walked past this rather lovely hedge down one of the side streets. I put a picture of it in the book and one of Miki’s colleagues showed it to her – it is her creation so she got in touch with me.
She’s sent me these up to date pictures of the hedge. Still not sure what animal it is but my current bet is a Scottie dog – Miki assures me it is still a work in progress, so it’s one to keep an eye on.
Edit: Miki tells me: “a Scottie it is….my favourite aunt / relative always had Scotties and this is for her. She was a French resident but bought her Scotties here in England due to inbreeding in France. I can’t get the Scottie square jaw quite right and the ‘coat’ is thinning at the side. Ah well…”
Help from a hedge specialist needed!!!
I am leaving my Scottie / Hammersmith but want to grow another Scottie at my new home. DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW / WHAT TO GROW in terms of evergreen privet and how long would it take to reach sufficient height? I am completely ignorant and merely shaped the hedge. Any advice greatly appreciated. Thank you –
Miki
Tricky question – topiary often works best on slow growing plants, box, yew, phillyrea latifolia, and bay all being standard choices. Alternatives include holly, beech, rosemary, hawthorn, privet and juniper and hornbeam, all of which retain their shape well after clipping, but none of them are especially quick to grow. I’ve got a box hedge, which would be fine for topiary but it is growing pretty slowly. I think some species of laurel and (obviously) leylandii are reasonably quick growers – might be worth trying to find a gardening forum where people have more experience of this problem?
Thank you so much. Any information is great as….I know NOTHING! Miki