Quercus ilex – Niwaki (Holm Oak)

These gorgeous trees are very special. Grown from acorns planted 25 years ago and artfully cultivated into the unique forms you see here today. ‘Niwaki’ or sculpted trees of a quality like these are rare and choice indeed. It takes an astonishing amount of patience and dedication to achieve these shapes: each tree is its own landscape of vaulted cloud and pillowcultivated over time by our team of dedicated (obsessive) Niwaki experts. Since they’re sturdy old and adaptable Quercus ilex they will grow in whatever you put them in from chalk to clay (although potted into a gargantuan vessel would also be breathtaking) and they are unfussy about aspect. They manage extremely well in windy coastal spots and are equally as happy in a sun-drenched courtyard.

Would these look tremendous in your garden?

The Quercus ilex Family

One of the toughest and loveliest evergreen trees in the world, in our opinion. It will do pretty little pale green catkins in spring and teeny acorns in autumn but the foliage is its year-round asset. Small, glossy dark green leaves with a slightly paler underside are produced in such abundance that the tree quickly becomes very dense and has a graceful solidity of form when au-naturelle. However this quality makes it superb for training and cultivating as a more controlled standard specimen, as you can see here. Adding to their obvious visual qualities, they are highly adaptable and versatile in the garden, taking full sun or shade and having no fussiness with regards to soil. Very few trees have such an adaptability to so many different climates: they’ll grow on chalk or clay, by the sea, in the middle of a wood or on top of a hill.