Gary, Barbara Woodbury is well known in the Chicago area for her custom
made topiaries. She created one for us at Brookfield. Check out her
website www.Barbarasworld.net. Phone number 815-459-4498. She would be
very helpful.
Diane

Diane Dunlap, Horticulturist
Brookfield Zoo
3300 S. Golf Rd
Brookfield, IL 60513
708-485-0263 x538
didunlap@...


-----Original Message-----
From: Gary Wangler [mailto:gjw9977@...]
Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 2:12 PM
To: azh@...
Subject: [AZH] Outdoor Topiarys in St. Louis,,,


Hi Group, all is going well I hope.
All is well here at the hospital.

I hope the conference went well for you all.

I have a favor to ask. Some advice on the topiaries we installed and
planted in the landscape in front of the hospital.

The topiaries were installed in July 2002 and planted with Boston
Ivy, 1 gallon containers in the ground.

The wire frames are of animals, horses, giraffes and elephants. They
range from 41/2' to 10' in height from the ground and constructed
using a wire mesh. Openings are about 4" square.

The reason we chose to plant with vines was to cover the frame and
trim the vines to the contour of the animal.

Problems I'm having are: the vines, Boston Ivy, tend to not attach to
the open wire but rather a plant that wants a masonry surface to grow
onto.

Next, watering is an issue. Structures that tall would have to be
watered daily in the hot season if the structure were stuffed with a
material and planted directly into that material.

I can stuff them if I use a material on the underside or belly such
as a weed barrier to prevent the material from falling out and then
plant the figures thru the wire mesh all around.
Using annuals, this is time consuming each year and using perennial,
I take the chance of a harsh winter burning the plants.
Using woody material, a harsh winter could also destroy the plants
and leave a void and having to start over again.

Irrigation could be attached to the interior of the structure with a
full circle head at the top flooding the figure from overhead.

The reason I chose vines to begin with is to cover the structure and
with the roots in the ground, existing irrigation waters the roots.

We have switched the smaller topiaries to using euonymous as a
perennial from annuals and these lower profile structures can be
irrigated.

Any thoughts, advice or information, articles or websites would be
appreciated

Thanks,,,gary.


Gary Wangler,
Horticulturist / Supervisor
St. Louis Children's Hospital
1 Children's Place
St. Louis, Missoouri 63110

(314) 454-4770


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