Frog topiary
A frog topiary is a small, sitting piece that suits the edge of a pond, a step, a border or a planter. Ours are built on the same welded galvanized frames as everything else, finished in hand-packed sphagnum moss or left as bare wire for you to stuff or plant up, from around six inches high. At that size they are easily moved by one person, which is why they are usually bought in pairs or small groups.
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.
In the workshop now
2 frog pieces, from $72.
How it is finished
The same frog, four ways.
Every piece starts as the same welded, galvanized steel frame. What goes over it is the choice.
Small pieces are made differently to large ones.
Below about a foot, a topiary stops being an engineering job and becomes a hand job. There is no internal tubing, no sectioning and no footing — the frame is bent, welded, galvanized and packed in one go, and the whole thing is light enough to move with one hand.
It also changes how they are used. A single frog on a step reads as an ornament; a few at different sizes along a pond edge reads as a decision. And because nothing at this size needs a footing, they can be moved whenever the planting around them changes.
The rest of the small pieces sit in mossed animal topiary, and the bare frames in wire frame topiary.
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.
02Steel 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.
03Galvanized, welds includedGalvanized over every surface including the welds — which is exactly where outdoor steel fails first.
04Sphagnum 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
Frog topiary questions, answered.
How small do they go?
From around six inches, which is a step, a planter edge or a shelf. Every listing gives exact dimensions.
Can it sit by a pond?
Yes, and that is where they are usually put. Keep the base above the waterline so the steel is not standing in water.
Moss or frame?
A mossed frog is green immediately. A bare frame is for planting up with creeping fig or a small-leaved climber.
Do they work indoors?
Mossed pieces do, and they need misting rather than watering. Bare frames planted with live material need light.
Can you build a large one?
Yes — scale is a commission question. Send the size and where it will stand.
Other animals we build
Bunny topiary · Dinosaur topiary · Dog topiary · Horse topiary · Elephant topiary · Deer topiary · Swan topiary · Giraffe topiary · Bear topiary
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.
