Topiary is sold by height, and height can mean more than one thing depending on the piece. Getting it right before you order matters, because a 36-inch topiary and a 36-inch topiary in a 12-inch planter are two very different objects in a doorway. This is how we quote sizes and how to check a piece will fit.
Where is a topiary measured from?
On live pieces, height is measured from the soil line to the top of the plant. The pot is not counted. That is the same convention we use on the live boxwood receiving FAQ and on delivery and receiving, so a quoted 36-inch boxwood is 36 inches of plant sitting on top of whatever container it ships in.
This is the number people most often get wrong. If a piece has to clear a doorway, fit under a soffit or sit on a table, add the height of the container to the quoted height before you compare it against your space.
How are stacked and shaped pieces measured?
Multi-part pieces are quoted by their overall height, with the individual sections listed separately. A triple-ball boxwood at 40 inches, for example, is a 12-inch ball at the base, a 10-inch ball in the middle and an 8-inch ball on top — the 40 inches is the whole assembly including the stem between them, not any one ball.
The same logic applies to a teardrop, cone or spiral: the quoted figure is the finished form from soil line to tip. Where the width matters as much as the height — a cone in a narrow entry, a ball that has to clear a railing — ask us for the widest point. We have it for every piece we make and it is often the dimension that decides whether something fits.
What about animal and frame topiary?
Animals and custom frames are quoted by height and length together, because a dog or a dinosaur is defined by both. Height is taken at the tallest point of the piece as it stands, length nose to tail. For anything going into a specific spot, send us the space and we will tell you which size reads correctly in it — scale is easy to misjudge from a photograph, and a piece that is technically small enough can still overwhelm a doorway.
How should I measure my own space?
Measure the opening, not the room. Height to the lowest obstruction, width at the narrowest point, and the depth you can give up without the piece being brushed against every time someone walks past. For a pair flanking a door, measure the gap between them as well; matched topiary looks wrong when the spacing fights the size.
Take the delivery route into account too, particularly for large pieces. A tall topiary that fits its final position but not the stairwell, lift or gate on the way in is a problem we would much rather solve on the phone than on the day.
Not sure which size to order?
Tell us the space and we will tell you the size. Call 866-306-1020 or send us the dimensions, and a photograph of the spot if you have one — that is usually faster than any measuring guide. For made-to-order work, sizing is part of the design conversation anyway; see custom made topiary.
That is how we measure the plant. Measuring the container is a different problem with a different trap in it, because the width a planter is listed at is not its opening: what size planter a topiary needs.
