Married couple spend 35 years perfecting their topiary garden which attracted more than 300 visitors
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A Welsh couple has created a topiary garden at their home that gives the illusion that the trees are watching you.
Christine and Keith Williamson, from Anglesey, Wales, created an incredible art gallery made entirely of foliage, twigs, trees and shrubs.
The garden is full of familiar characters including Olaf from Frozen and Pacman. It even has a giant looming face that greets everyone as they walk past.
The husband and wife duo have been pruning and priming their Leylandii, and other various shrubs and trees, for over 30 years, ‘as a bit of fun’.
The couple, both retired municipal employees, have become real local celebrities thanks to their incredible sculptures.
Last year, the 35-year-old garden attracted more than 300 visitors.
A Welsh couple have created a topiary garden at their home that gives the illusion that the trees are watching you
Christine and Keith Williamson (pictured), from Anglesey, Wales, created an incredible art gallery made entirely of foliage, twigs, trees and shrubs
The garden is full of well-known characters, including Olaf from Frozen and Pacman, the couple said. It even has a giant looming face that greets everyone as they walk by
The husband and wife duo have been pruning and priming their Leylandii and other various shrubs and trees for over 30 years, ‘as a bit of fun’
‘We opened the garden as part of the national garden plan, and although our garden is small, we have had over 300 visitors!’ Keith, 69, shared.
“Everyone always stops when they walk by to look, and when we see them, we usually invite them in the back so they can look at the other hidden sculptures.
Christine, 65, added: ‘We had a wild garden full of Leylandii trees in the 80’s, they just kept growing all over the place and it was quite a curse in the area.
‘We mainly make faces in our topiary, and simply create what we see in the plant.
‘We never use wire or shape it in an unnatural way, we just let the trees grow and try to create shapes and characters from there.
Keith, echoing his wife’s comments, said, “They take a lot of time developing the characters we sometimes see.
“We have a Welsh Dragon in our backyard that has taken years to grow on its own, and then we have a scarecrow that we had to part the branches of the tree to grow properly.
“We’ve done everything from Easter Island heads to a puppy. It’s about what we see in the bushes!’
The couple, both retired municipal employees, have become real local celebrities thanks to their sculptures
Last year, the 35-year-old garden attracted more than 300 visitors, Keith claims. He is depicted in the garden with two topiary heads
The couple opened the garden 35 years ago as part of the national garden plan. Keith poses with some topiary heads
Keith said, “We’ve done everything from Easter Island heads to a puppy. It’s about what we see in the bushes!’
Keith is depicted with a topiary sculpture in a bathtub. He and his wife claim their garden helped them make new friends
One of the couple’s biggest pieces features a giant face that overlooks the road opposite their home.
Christine said: ‘The big face is definitely a favorite of the locals and our neighbors.
“Since we’re in a fairly remote area, our neighbors often use it to instruct couriers for deliveries.
“At Christmas, we love to put lights in the garden, and we tend to put a giant hat on the face that’s sure to get a few glances!”
She added: “One of the funniest interactions we had was when a group of American ladies discovered our yard while driving down the country roads.
“They walked into the yard and just started taking pictures and said they’d never seen anything like it.
“Having our topiary garden has actually helped us make friends on a global scale as well, as they’ve seen the garden pass by and come to say hello.”
Leylandii trees can grow up to 30 feet tall and 20 feet wide if left untrimmed, according to Why Farming?.
The leylandii is the fastest growing tree in the world, growing more than 35 centimeters annually. It is unclear how long the couple will keep their trees.
One of the couple’s biggest pieces features a giant face looking out over the road across from their home
Leylandii trees can grow up to 30 feet tall and 20 feet wide if left untrimmed. The leylandii is the fastest growing tree in the world and grows more than 35 centimeters annually
Keith said it can take a lot of time to develop the characters we sometimes see. He is depicted with a garden tool
Keith says that ‘everyone always stops when they walk by to look’ and that he and Christine usually ‘invite them back so they can look at the other hidden sculptures’
Keith, pictured with a Welsh Dragon sculpture, said: ‘We have a Welsh Dragon in our backyard that took years to grow in itself, and then we also have a scarecrow that required us to separate the branches from the tree so that it would grow well’
Keith Williamson is pictured trimming a hedge in his topiary garden. It is unclear how long the couple will keep their trees