Making a spruce topiary - help please

Hi:

Some years ago, I saw an acrocona spruce that had been made into a globe topiary on a standard about 5'6" high. I checked with the nursery where I saw it and they confirmed it was not a graft but a tree that had been trimmed into this shape. The tree's natural form is a pyramid that grows to 40' high. It's a slow grower and would probably take at least 8-10 years to reach the height I want

I have bought a tree in a #7 container, about 2'6" high. I've never attempted topiary before and I'd really appreciate anyone's help in getting the basics right.

When do I start to trim off the bottom branches? If I trim them right back to the stem, will it harm the plant? How far up should I trim now? SImple questions but this is a $90 investment and I want to get it right!!

Thanks

Hi Andy, you have invested a lot of money on your spruce, so if I were you I would get myself down to the librery and get hold of a book that explanes the joy's and the know how on Topiary, I have done the exact thing that you are wishing to do, but with HOLLY and they look fab, a real focal point, however, holly is a tough plant and can take a whole lot of abuse and will regrow IF you make any mistakes and they are also 10 a penny if you have to start all over again or leave to grow natural. What I know about the spruce that I have 3 specimen tree's, they prefere a dampish slightly acid soil.
What I do know about topiary is that the shape is done over several years and you DONT cut out the growing tip till you have reached about a foot higher than your finished hight or you will stop the plant growing upwords, which in turn will determine the length of the trunk you want to show from the ground. with my Holly, I cut right back to the trunk, all the growth that I felt happy to remove to get the tall stem for my LOLLYPOP shape, this has to be done with secatures, as you want to snip, stand back to have a look and then continue, sometimes even tie a branch in position for the right shape. You wont form your shape all in the one day unless you are an expert at Topiary, this aint for the faint hearted AND as you have an expensive plant, is why I think you need a book about this, IF you over cut and at the wrong time of year, you could end up with a ball shape that has gone brown instead of green, reason being, I am not sure IF your spruce will regrow Fast enough where you cut it, but I have seen them in the stores at a lottery winners price, that cost makes me think that it takes many years of more gentle pruning, and therefore has to be cared for a lot longer than some other form of Topiary plants, so please go with care, maybe someone else who knows the spruse named Acrocona will know better, I do know that some spruce need different care, feeding and position than others, I have 3 and all are slightly different, in needle shape, colour, size, and habbit, one in particuler, needs more shelter from wind or the branches fall wide open. Hope this is not complicating things too much, but I would err on the side of caution and read up about it first. good luck anyway Andy, I will be thinking about you, let us know if you get any good advice.
WeeNel.