By Julie Christensen
boxwood ( genus Buxus ) were first introduce in America from England in 1652 . Colonists planted them wide and they still can be found in old compound garden throughout the East Coast . With their little , evergreen leaf , boxwoods are most widely used as tightly clipped hedge , but they can be allowed to take a more natural mannikin or clip into topiary or balls .
There are three species of boxwoods – English ( B. sempervirens),Japanese(Buxus microphyllavar.japonica)and American or common boxwood(Buxus sempervirens , L ) . English Turkish boxwood is a true midget case , ordinarily stay under 4 foot tall . It is the most commonly grow specie . Japanese boxwood was first put in in 1890 . Cultivars can grow up to 8 foot grandiloquent and 20 foot wide . Japanese boxwood is typically grow in the south because it is more heat tolerant than other varieties . Common boxwood is a cold - tolerant bush or tree that can grow to 20 substructure tall or more . All three mintage boom in the USDA plant hardiness zones 5 through 8 , although some cultivar are more adaptable .
Flickr Creative Commons photo courtesy of The Greenery Nursery.
Growing Boxwood Shrubs
Boxwoods are fairly adaptable , but they ’ll grow respectable if you give them their favorite growing condition . Although evergreen plant , boxwoods are prone to wintertime bronzing , specially when constitute in an unprotected location . The best spot for them is on the magnetic north or northeasterly side of the house in partial shade to full sunlight . Morning Lord’s Day with a lilliputian afternoon subtlety is ideal .
Boxwoods spring up dependable in light , loamy or sandy grime . They ’re prone to root rots in corpse soil so rectify such soils to lighten up them or plant box in evoke beds . Also , avoid planting boxwoods in low - lying areas that tend to stay slopped after rainfall . They also prefer a soil pH between 6.0 and 7.5 . Amend acidic soils with Citrus aurantifolia the fall before you plant boxwoods .
Boxwoods develop slowly . Some varieties grow as little as 1 inch per year . These long - lived plants can take as much as 10 to 15 old age to arrive at their mature height . Because of this boring increase , they do n’t respond well to heavy pruning . or else , crop them lightly each winter to bump off any bushed or pathological offshoot and to open up the plant life , if necessary . If you want a clipped physical body , trim them with hedgerow clippers two or three time each season , trimming back only ½ in at a time . If you ’re develop a hedgerow , make certain the top of the hedge is slightly narrower than the bottom so light can reach the lower portions of the plants .
Fertilize boxwoods in other spring before new growth emerges with about 1 cup of 10 - 10 - 10 fertilizer per 100 feet of row . If you have sandy soil , make an additional software in former summertime , but do n’t fertilise Turkish boxwood in recent summer . Boxwoods need systematically moist , but not soggy , land . Water two or three time per calendar week , or as needed , to keep the soil moist 1 inch beneath the Earth’s surface . Mulch with 2 inches of Sir Henry Joseph Wood buffalo chip or bark to avail keep the ground moist .
Propagating Boxwood
Because boxwoods grow so tardily , most gardeners prefer to grow them from shew nursery plants . However , you could also propagate boxwoods from cuttings . Cut a 5- to 6 - inch firearm from a smartly growing ramification . transfer the leaves from the bottom two inch of the bow and place it in a cutting medium such as coarse sand . Keep the intermediate moist and localize the cut in a sunny location . Transplant it when you acknowledge roots growing from the film editing – typically in two to four weeks .
Problems
The most common job with boxwood is winter injury , which causes browning farewell . While this circumstance wo n’t kill the industrial plant , it is n’t particularly attractive . Winter bronzing is normal on Nipponese miscellany , but you’re able to prevent it in other cultivars by locate the plant life in a protected location or wrapping them loosely with gunny during the wintertime . verify they received passable water system and fertilizer during the growing time of year and water them occasionally during the wintertime if condition are dry .
Sucking insects , such as aphids , psylla and spider jot , sometimes infest Turkish boxwood . You may notice wilt leaves and honeydew , a sticky substance , on the leaves and ground . handle these pests with insecticidal oil or an insecticide label for their function .
Boxwood decline is a disease that sometimes afflicts English boxwoods . Characterized by irksome increase and a gradual fall in health , this condition can be downplay by providing proper growing conditions .
con more about the boxwoodon YouTube .
P Allen Smith distinguish you how to wish for boxwoodson YouTube .
The United States National Arboretumwrites about boxwood .
Julie Christensen learned about gardening on her grandfather ’s farm and female parent ’s vegetable garden in southerly Idaho . Today , she lives and garden on the high plain of Colorado . When she ’s not fag in the dirt , Julie write about food , Education Department , parenting and horticulture .
