ESPALIER

Here is a lovely little technique for gardeners who like to exert control over nature.

Ultimately when you garden you can chose between two styles. The first style is natural. The other style is manicured. The natural style gardener will choose to trim an eight foot hedge with a pair of pruners. A snip here; a snip there. They want the plant to define their own shape. Soft and flowing.

The manicurist will also use pruning shears--after they use the electric trimmer to sculpt every branch to closely the same dimension. Then they will carefully attack any small branch, twig, or leaf which would have the audacity to stick out one centimeter further than their bretheren.

If you are a manicurist style gardener, you are going to love the technique of espalier. Essentially, this technique allows you to train and prune living plant material along a trellis or frame in an intricate and formal design.

I think my neighbor's espalier is a magnificent example.