Karen Thomson is the owner and operator of Thomson Topiaries, L.L.C.
She has a Bachelors of Science degree in Horticulture from Iowa State University.
Growing up on a farm in rural Iowa, plants have always been an important part of
Karen's life. Karen and her husband lived in South Carolina for a time following
college which is where she was first introduced to the art of topiary making. The
Garden Center she worked at made and grew topiaries, as well as had some workshops for
their customers. Following the family's return to the midwest, topiaries remained
Karen's favorite hobby.
Karen had no problem deciding what would go into her greenhouse in the backyard of her historic house in suburban Chicago. She worked for a major horticulture company, Ball Seed Company for many years while building up the topiary business. Now Thomson Topiaries has been in business since 1993 and Karen's favorite part is working with people and sharing the excitement of growing these animal creations.