Dinosaur topiary sculptures, by species

Every dinosaur species we build, gathered in one place: T-Rex, stegosaurus, triceratops and the turf and moss families in between, from a five-foot playground piece up to sixteen feet and beyond. All of them sit on welded, galvanized steel armatures; anything above six feet carries internal steel tubing and is built in sections so it can be crated, moved and assembled on site. Looking for the big one? The sixteen-foot T-Rex has its own page.

See the dinosaur pieces
Made in our own workshopWelded, galvanized and covered here — not drop-shipped.
Ships across US & CanadaSmall pieces by UPS, large ones by freight with delivery quoted.
Built to outlast the foliageGalvanized steel under everything, including the welds.
4–10 weeks for a commissionReady-made pieces leave sooner; we tell you which before you pay.

Why a dinosaur has to be engineered, not just shaped.

A dinosaur is mostly cantilever. The head and the tail hang a long way from the feet, so the load has to be carried back through the body into a base that can be bolted down or set into a footing. Anything over six feet gets steel tubing run inside the frame for exactly that reason.

It also has to travel. Large pieces are built in sections with a marked break point so they can be crated, moved and re-assembled on site without cutting.

The sixteen-foot T-Rex is in the catalogue here, and the downtown installation it belongs to is written up in the HedgeFun trail.

What it needs once it is standing.

A mossed piece wants misting through dry spells and a refresh of the moss every year or so. A bare frame wants nothing at all until you decide to plant it. Turf and artificial pieces want an occasional rinse and no more — no watering, no trimming, no seasonal work.

The steel underneath is the part that decides how long the piece lasts, and galvanized steel outdoors is measured in decades rather than seasons.

Full instructions by material are on our care pages; if a piece has gone tired, this eight-year-old swan shows what a restoration looks like.

In the workshop

Steel first, then green.

Three of the six stages every piece goes through. The frame is the sculpture; everything after it is surface.

  1. The same rabbit as a bare welded steel wire armature, weld points marked02Steel rod, bent and weldedSteel rod bent by hand and welded into a cage that carries the pose. Anything over six feet also gets steel tubing run inside it.
  2. The rabbit frame lowered on a hook into a bath of molten zinc for hot-dip galvanizing03Galvanized, welds includedGalvanized over every surface including the welds — which is exactly where outdoor steel fails first.
  3. Hands packing long-fibre sphagnum moss into the rabbit frame, half filled04Sphagnum packed by handLong-fibre sphagnum packed into the cage by hand and bound down, so the piece is green the day it arrives.

The full sequence — drawing, welding, galvanizing, mossing, planting and installation — is set out step by step in how a topiary form is made.

Before you order

Dinosaur topiary questions, answered.

How big can a dinosaur topiary be?

The largest we have built is sixteen feet. Five to eight feet suits a playground or a garden; a park entrance or a restaurant frontage usually wants ten feet or more to read from the road.

Are dinosaur topiaries safe around children?

They are not built to be climbed, but they are built so that someone climbing on one will not fold it — internal steel tubing runs through anything over six feet, and large pieces are anchored to a footing rather than spiked into a lawn.

What are they covered in?

Sphagnum moss for a soft, living look; artificial turf or outdoor foliage where the piece has to hold colour in full sun and weather without upkeep. The frame underneath is the same either way.

How long does a dinosaur commission take?

Four to ten weeks depending on scale and finish. Pieces already in the catalogue leave sooner — we tell you which before you pay.

Can you build a specific species?

Yes. Send a photograph or a sketch with the height you need. Most of what leaves the workshop started as somebody's reference picture.

Something bigger?

Tell us the animal and the size.

Send a photograph or a sketch with the height you need and where it will stand. We come back with a design, a price and a delivery date — then build it in our own workshop.

Start a commission

or call 866·306·1020