Classic Cypress Spiral Topiary Pair - Fenn & Arlo

Spirals are sold by overall height. The conifer and yew pairs band in four heights — 1.1–1.3m, 1.3–1.5m, 1.5–1.7m and 1.7–2m — and the olive pair stands at a single 2–2.3m grade. Match the height to what the spiral has to hold rather than to the budget: 1.1–1.3m suits a modest door, a courtyard corner or a generous pot; 1.3–1.7m is the doorstep sweet spot for most frontages; and 1.7–2m upwards is for tall frontages, gateways and the foot of a drive. Remember that a taller spiral is simply an older plant with more turns carved into it, so the larger bands arrive denser and more sharply defined, and the price follows the grower-years rather than the height alone.

Closely, because they were grown and carved as twins rather than picked as a pair on dispatch day. We guarantee a height difference of no more than 10cm between them, and before your pallet is built you receive your pair's quality-control certificate — origins, dimensions and six photographs of your actual two spirals — with 24 hours to review before dispatch. If the pair that arrives still isn't right, email hello@topiarytwins.co.uk within 7 days of delivery with the subject “Matching Guarantee Claim – [order number]”. Claims are resolved within 24 hours, with a replacement pair or a full refund, whichever you prefer.

Site and register first, price second. For maximum twist per pound the conifers are the entry point: Drift & Vale carve into a steel-blue helix, Lior & Saffra into a warm golden one that glows in low winter sun, and Fenn & Arlo are the fresh-green classic most people picture when they picture a spiral. Against dark render or grey landscaping a coloured pair does the work of planting and lighting at once. For a sunny position with sharp drainage, Neris & Odon, the Mediterranean olive pair, stands 2–2.3m on aged trunks and brings the only silver in the range. And where a frontage deserves the heritage grade — darkest green, a generational lifespan, one trim a year — Sterling & Wren, the English yew spirals, are the better part of a decade in the carving.

Where the eye should land. At a door or gate, one either side, centred on the width available and clear of the door swing, with a plain backdrop behind them if you have one — render, a painted wall or a dark fence lets the channel between the turns read from the street. At the foot of a drive, set them far enough back from the turning line that a car door opens without brushing the foliage. Everywhere else the rule is one pair per sightline: spirals are soloists, and two of them competing in the same view cancel each other out, so let cones or balls do any repetition around them. If you're unsure, email a photo of the spot to hello@topiarytwins.co.uk and we'll mark it up, or take the two-minute Entrance Edit and we'll suggest a layout for you.

One rule, once or twice a year: keep the channel open. Follow the existing line with sharp shears and trim the turns back to shape before they blur into one another — you are maintaining a groove, not sculpting from scratch, and each pass takes minutes rather than an afternoon. On the conifers, always cut on the green and never back into bare wood, because a conifer will not regrow from it. English yew is the forgiving one: a single trim a year holds it, and it breaks willingly from old wood if a spiral has been allowed to drift. Kept clear, the channel holds the form for decades, and a yew spiral for generations. There's a full walkthrough in the spiral trees topiary guide.

Kerbside, on its own pallet, by a specialist plant haulier, UK-wide. Your two spirals travel upright and are never boxed, the consignment is fully tracked, and the driver phones about an hour ahead so you can be there when he arrives. Allow 14–21 working days from order — the pair is being selected, photographed and documented during that window, not sitting in a warehouse. Delivery is to the kerb, so plan how you'll move two tall, well-grown plants from the kerb to their position before the pallet lands.

Tell us early. The 6-Month Thrive Guarantee covers a plant that fails to thrive in its first six months: we replace it at 50% of the single-plant cost. Worked example — a £1,000 pair is £500 a plant, so your replacement costs £250. Email hello@topiarytwins.co.uk with the subject “Thrive Guarantee Claim – [order number]” and we review eligibility within 48 hours. One honest exclusion: if both plants fail, the guarantee doesn't apply, because two identical failures point at the site rather than the stock and a straight swap would only repeat it. That's precisely what Lifetime Care Support is for — unlimited email guidance from the growers, answered within 24 hours, free, forever, so we can fix the conditions instead.