Emma Roberts' Structured Garden Style: How to Get the Look Without the Stress
Wintertime is pruning time, and Emma Roberts' perfectly sculpted topiaries have us racing for the shears.
Okay, we’ll admit that an Instagram photo shared by Emma Roberts in July was not on our winter-garden bingo card for 2025. But in her photo, she was standing in front of perfectly sculpted hedges, and it was a reminder of just how powerful structure can be in a garden.
Crisp lines, sculpted hedges, balanced shapes, and intentional pruning instantly elevate an outdoor space. And the best part? Structured gardening doesn’t have to stop when temperatures get chilly.
In fact, winter is one of the best times to appreciate and maintain topiary and evergreen structures. With the leaves gone from deciduous plants and the bones of your garden out and vulnerable, here’s how you can keep things looking elegant and tidy so they'll thrive, even in January.
Why Winter Is Ideal for Structured Gardening
The summer season comes with a lot of growth, and the lushness makes it easy to hide mistakes. In winter, though, gardeners are forced to be more thoughtful about how things look. Even the tiniest wrongs can stick out like a sore thumb.
Evergreen shrubs like boxwood, yew, holly, and juniper hold their shape all year long, which makes them ideal candidates for cold-season structure.
Winter pruning (on mild days without frost) helps:
- Preserve clean lines
- Control size and shape before new growth starts popping up in spring
- Improve airflow and the ability for light to penetrate
- Highlight thoughtful design
Keep in mind, the key to this is light shaping, and certainly not aggressively cutting back.
Choose the Right Plants for Winter Topiary
Keep in mind that not every shrub is going to want attention in winter, but many evergreens are great at handling it. Look for plants that are known for their resilience and thick growth.
- Boxwood: A classic, and highly forgiving
- Yew: Works great for taller hedges
- Holly: Adds a nice bit of shine with its berries
- Dwarf spruce or juniper: Excellent if you want to shape them into cones or spirals
Walmart sells these Japanese boxwoods in a 10-pack. They can easily be shaped once grown out into balls, pyramids, or screen bushes.
For patios or entryways, container shrubs like this dwarf spruce from Walmart are ideal if you’re not quite committed to shrubs in the ground yet.
Prune With Precision (Not Power)
The key to shaping your shrubs in winter is restraint. Focus on tidying the edges and reinforcing existing shapes rather than creating new ones at this time of year.
Pro tip: Prune on dry days when temperatures are above freezing to avoid damaging brittle branches.
Sharp tools are essential. Clean cuts heal faster and reduce stress on your plants. These pruning shears from Amazon are exceptionally sharp and perfect for detailed, light cuts.
Pro Tip: Step back while pruning to make sure you’re happy with the shape. This level of symmetry doesn’t happen when you’re standing too close.
Protect Plants After Pruning
After you’ve shaped your shrubs, protect them from the harsh conditions of winter by mulching around the base to help regulate soil temperature and protect the roots.
If you live in an area where you have extreme cold in winter, breathable frost cloths can help protect freshly trimmed shrubs. This frost protection blanket from Lowe’s protects your greenery from cold, frost, wind, snow, and salt sprays.
Containers and Topiary Forms for Extra Polish
Looking for more instant structure? Use frames and containers. Metal topiary forms allow you to guide growth over time, while potted evergreens create a flexible design that you can rearrange as you want.
These grow bags from Amazon have breathable fabric, encouraging healthier root growth and allowing better drainage. These benefits help prevent root rot in cold, wet winter conditions.
Let Structure Be the Star
A winter garden doesn’t need to be all flowers to feel finished, and it doesn’t have to be dull either. Crisp hedges, sculpted spheres, and intentional repetition create elegance all on their own. Emma Roberts’ hedge photo is proof that structure never goes out of style, whatever the season.
