The evergreen and undemanding boxwood is an integral part of European garden culture: All the famous park landscapes and castle gardens of the various countries are unimaginable without the very pruning-tolerant tree. Whether as a solitary tree, as a hedge or topiary: the boxwood has had a strong influence on how we Europeans imagine a garden. The plant is still at home in almost all gardens today, even if cultivation is now proving difficult due to an introduced pest.

The boxwood can be cut into shape as you wish

Table of Contents

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  1. origin and distribution
  2. use
  3. appearance and growth
  4. flowering and flowering time
  5. toxicity
  6. Which location is suitable?
  7. soil / substrate
  8. Plant boxwood properly
  9. Water boxwood
  10. Fertilize boxwood properly
  11. Cut boxwood properly
  12. propagate boxwood
  13. hibernate
  14. Diseases
  15. pests
  16. species and varieties

    17. origin and distribution

    The boxwood genus (bot. Buxus) includes around 70 different species that are distributed all over the world. Only the common boxwood (bot. Buxus sempervirens) is native to Europe, which only occasionally occurs wild on calcareous soils on sunny, warm mountain slopes in southern Germany. Otherwise, the species is mainly represented in the countries around the Mediterranean.

    In addition to the common boxwood, the small-leaved (or Japanese) boxwood (bot. Buxus microphylla) is also of horticultural importance. This species originally comes from Korea and has been cultivated in Japan for many centuries. Both species are quite similar both in their appearance and in their requirements in terms of location and care.

    Incidentally, the genus name "Buxus" refers to the former use of the very hard, small-pored wood: In ancient times people used it to make boxes and other containers, which is why the tree was also called "pyxis" in ancient Greek - i.e. "box" or "box" - was called, as the ancient Roman writer and scholar Pliny tells us. The light-colored wood is still an important raw material in turning today.

    use

    Box is very versatile, can be used as a solitary tree - box trees can grow up to eight meters high - as a hedge or as a topiary for a wide variety of garden designs. Even detailed figures such as animals can be cut out of a healthy plant - with the appropriate skill, of course. Boxwood is practically indispensable for formal gardens, for rose gardens and cottage gardens - here traditionally above all as a border for beds.

    The European boxwood (bot. Buxus sempervirens) and its fast-growing varieties such as 'Handsworthiensis' are particularly suitable for dense and high privacy hedges. In addition, boxwood is ideal for underplanting taller trees and as a border or background planting for colorful flower and perennial borders. Furthermore, the plant can also be cared for in larger planters on the balcony or terrace.

    appearance and growth

    Both cultivated boxwood species are quite similar in terms of appearance and care, but the common boxwood grows a little faster than its Asian relative. In principle, however, boxwood is a very slow-growing woody plant that only gains between ten and twenty centimeters per year. However, under the right conditions, the shrub or small tree can become several centuries old and reach a height of up to eight meters during this time - provided the wood is allowed to grow freely and is not cut.

    Box trees are naturally densely branched and develop a rounded, quite compact crown. On the branches and twigs, conspicuously small, mostly round and opposite leaves sit close together. These are evergreen, which is why the box stays green even in winter.

    flowering and flowering time

    If numerous yellow flowers suddenly appear on your box between the months of March and May, you are witnessing a rare event - box trees only bloom when they are at least ten years old and have had little or no pruning. In addition, the bloom does not occur every year, as a year with a profuse bloom is often followed by years with few or no blooms. Flowering boxwood is an important, nectar-rich insect pasture that is busily visited by butterflies, bumblebees, bees and other buzzing garden dwellers. Therefore, do not cut back the blossom, anyway the splendor - contrary to different opinions in some garden forums - hardly has any influence on the growth of the boxwood.

    After flowering, fruit capsules containing seeds develop. However, the development of the fruits of the plant costs a lot of energy, which in turn is actually reflected in a significantly slower growth. Therefore, cut back the box after flowering, especially since seed propagation is too complicated for laypeople anyway.

    toxicity

    Even if pests such as the dreaded box tree moth prefer to attack the box: the wood is highly poisonous for people and pets. All parts of the plant contain around 70 different alkaloids, of which cyclobuxin is the most effective. The proportion of this toxin in the leaves and bark of the boxwood is around three percent. Poisoning can be fatal, even if this consequence is rare because of the very bitter taste of the plant - nobody eats more than one sample voluntarily. In addition, the boxwood does not have any tasty-looking flowers or fruits such as the yew, which is also very poisonous.

    Which location is suitable?

    The boxwood feels most comfortable in a sunny to semi-shady and warm location, which should neither be hot nor have too much sunlight - around midday - for example. The Buchs prefers plenty of sun in the morning and evening, while the location is ideally shaded at the hottest time of the day. Therefore, do not necessarily plant the wood directly in front of a bright south-facing wall - leaf damage is inevitable in such a location. But it must not be too shady either, because the boxwood grows poorly if there is a lack of light.
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    soil / substrate

    If possible, plant the boxwood on loamy, calcareous soil, which you can improve with compost or humus soil when planting if necessary (e.g. if the subsoil is quite sandy). Since boxwood also does not tolerate waterlogging, the soil should be well drained and loose. For pot specimens, choose commercially available compost-based pot plant or potting soil, as this tends less to water stagnation and also protects the peat decay.

    Plant boxwood properly

    The best time to plant the boxwood is spring, on a mild day in April or May. Make sure that you put the box about five centimeters deeper into the ground than it was in the pot before, and the planting distance given on the label should be strictly observed. Too dense planting only promotes disease and pest infestation. Depending on the variety, plan around six to seven specimens per meter for a hedge.

    And this is how it is planted:

    • Place the boxwood, bare roots, in a bucket of water.
    • This allows the roots to soak up plenty of moisture.
    • In the meantime, dig a planting hole.
    • This should be at least twice as deep and twice as wide as the circumference of the planter.
    • Loosen the soil in the planting hole.
    • Mix the excavation with compost.
    • Plant the box and press the soil firmly.
    • Water the plant.

    The soil should be kept slightly moist until it grows in (this is shown by the formation of the first green shoots).
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    Water boxwood

    The same watering rules apply to boxwood as to most other garden plants:

    • water as early as possible in the morning
    • do not water in the evening or midday
    • always pour from below and directly onto the ground
    • Do not water the leaves (this will result in leaf damage and fungal diseases)
    • do not use cold water straight from the tap
    • rather use rainwater or stagnant tap water
    • do not water during frost

    Otherwise, the boxwood is quite insensitive to drought, with two exceptions: specimens cultivated in pots should not dry out, as this leads to serious damage. Freshly planted box trees also need an evenly moist soil until they have successfully grown.
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    Fertilize boxwood properly

    Although the boxwood is anything but a heavy consumer, it needs nitrogen above all for healthy growth. A deficiency is quickly noticeable by brownish discoloration of the leaves. Therefore, both planted out and cultivated in the bucket should be fertilized regularly. These are best suited for this

    • Compost and horn shavings: (32.93€) between April and September every three to four weeks three liters of compost and a tablespoon of horn shavings per square meter of planting area
    • Boxwood fertilizer or green plant fertilizer: according to package instructions and after a previous soil analysis
    • Patentkali: in August to harden the trees for the winter

    Incidentally, blue grain is less suitable for fertilization, since the agent for boxwood has the wrong nutrient composition and thus leads to deficiency symptoms.
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    Cut boxwood properly

    The popularity of the boxwood is explained above all by its tolerance for pruning: the plant tolerates any form of pruning and should always be pruned at least twice a year. Especially the stronger growing varieties then branch better and get a nice, dense growth. Topiary trees in particular - boxwood can be easily cut into detailed figures such as spirals and animals, but also into simple geometric shapes such as balls, cones or cubes - require scissors between one and five times a year. The concrete frequency is measured in the vigorous growth of the boxwood variety and in the detail of the figure. In principle, boxwood tolerates pruning deep into perennial wood very well.
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    propagate boxwood

    The easiest way to propagate the boxwood is to use so-called cracklings. These are cuttings, which are not separated from the mother plant with a knife, but are instead carefully torn off. A piece of the bark remains at the point of the crack, which you shorten slightly with a strong knife before planting. The best time for this form of propagation is July and August. The further steps are:

    • Separate the shoots from the mother plant
    • optimal length between 20 and 30 centimeters
    • Cut off the excess bark
    • Cut back shoots by a third at the top end
    • remove lower leaves
    • Plant cuttings directly in the garden
    • protected pot culture not necessary
    • choose a partially shaded, sheltered location
    • Soil should be loamy, loose and rich in humus
    • Leaves must not touch soil
    • keep soil moistured
    • cover with brushwood in winter

    It can take up to six months for the young cuttings to form their first roots. As a rule, however, the young plants are rooted by the next spring with the procedure described above.
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    hibernate

    Although box trees are sufficiently hardy, they also need water in winter because of their evergreen leaves. Potted plants in particular should be watered regularly to compensate for the evaporated moisture. Water the plants in mild, frost-free weather and especially when the sun is shining.

    Speaking of the sun: The combination of "frosty cold" and "bright sunshine" quickly leads to frost damage to leaves and shoots. Therefore, it makes sense to cover the plants with fleece when the weather is suitable. On the other hand, simply place specimens cultivated in pots in a semi-shady place.

    By the way: Although bucket beech trees can stay outside during the winter months, they must be protected from freezing the substrate and thus the roots. To do this, place the planter on a base of wood or styrofoam and wrap it with an insulating but air-permeable material. For example, jute bags, bamboo mats or special gardening fleece are ideal.
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    Diseases

    Unfortunately, the boxwood is a very sensitive plant to diseases, which is threatened primarily by various fungal diseases as a result of care or location errors. These mainly occur when the planting is too narrow or when the soil is wet. If you have found one of the diseases described in the following section on your boxwood, you should immediately cut out all diseased shoots deep into the healthy wood and dispose of them with household waste. In any case, do not throw infected material on the compost to prevent further spread.

    The most common diseases in the Buchs:

    • Dieback of shoots (pathogen: Cylidrocladium buxicola)
    • Boxwood canker (pathogen: Volutella buxi): yellow to dark leaf spots, leaves dry up and are dropped, pink spores on the underside of the leaves, cracks in the bark
    • Boxwood wilt (pathogen: Fusarium buxicola): Leaves turn brown, leathery and dry up, dark brown spore deposits on the underside of the leaves

    Dieback (Cylindrocladium buxicola)

    The boxwood is particularly endangered by the fungus Cylindrocladium buxicola, which causes the dreaded dieback of shoots. The pathogen enters the plant via the leaves, especially after prolonged downpours, and gradually causes them to die off after infection. You can recognize an infection by the following signs:

    • dark brown to black spots on leaves and shoots
    • Leaf spots gradually spread
    • white spore deposits form on the underside of the leaves
    • Affected shoots and leaves dry up
    • as the disease progresses, the entire plant dies

    Only a vigorous pruning deep into the healthy wood helps against the disease. If the plant dies off, you should not plant new boxwood in the affected area, as the pathogen remains in the soil for many years via its spores and also infects new boxwood.

    The risk of infection can be minimized if you do not cut back in rainy or damp weather. The cuts create new gateways that allow the fungus to enter the previously healthy box.
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    pests

    Apart from fungal diseases, the box tree is also threatened by a number of pests, of which primarily the box tree moth, which has been appearing more and more in recent years, is destroying entire stocks. Spider mites, gall midges and boxwood fleas do not cause half as much damage and are also easier to combat.

    Box tree moth (Cydalima perspectalis)

    This is a pest introduced by imports from Asia, whose caterpillars defoliate entire stands of boxwood within a short time due to their massive occurrence and their feeding behavior. Depending on the stage of development, the box tree moth caterpillars are between eight millimeters and five centimeters long and easily recognizable by their green basic color with light-dark longitudinal stripes and their black head. The adult moth, on the other hand, is quite small and has light-colored wings with a brownish edge. It only lives for a few days, during which time it is always in the vicinity of box plants and lays its eggs there.

    The caterpillars overwinter in the woods and start feeding quite early in the year: Each of the little animals eats about 45 boxwood leaves, which doesn't sound like much at first. However, they often appear in hundreds or thousands of specimens, so that the box is quickly eaten bare. You often only recognize an infestation when the infested plants are already brown and leafless, as the caterpillars hide in white webs inside the dense wood.

    Measures against the box tree moth:

    • Collect caterpillars and pupae
    • Install scent traps for adult moths
    • cut back infested areas
    • As a precaution, dust the box with rock dust (€14.13) or algae lime in the spring
    • Use biological insecticides if the infestation is severe

    tips

    If you live in a region with an increased occurrence of the box tree moth and/or dieback, the following alternatives make more sense for the garden instead of the box tree: hedge myrtle (Lonicera pileata), hedge myrtle (Lonicera nitida 'Elegant'), mountain holly (Ilex crenata ' Glorie Gem'), Low Mountain Ilex (Ilex crenata 'Stokes') or for borders Ilex aquifolium 'Heckenzwerg'. The best alternative to Buchs so far is the new breed Rhododendron micranthum 'Bloombux'.

    species and varieties

    The following two boxwood species and their varieties have proven particularly useful for planting in ornamental gardens.

    Common boxwood (bot. Buxus sempervirens)

    The common boxwood has been known for thousands of years - and was already highly valued in prehistoric times because of its extremely hard wood. For example, researchers sometimes found grave goods in the form of grave sticks made of boxwood in the graves of Neanderthals. The native species is also very popular as a garden plant and was already used in gardens in ancient Rome. Due to its very long cultural history, around 60 different varieties of the species have now developed, some of which have different properties. We present the most beautiful ones for your home garden here:

    • 'Angustifolia': compact but comparatively fast-growing variety with attractive, dark green foliage
    • 'Arborescens': for topiary and hedges, can grow into a tree with age
    • 'Aurea': the variety impresses with golden yellow foliage
    • 'Aureo-variegata': beautiful, robust variety for larger bushes, large, variegated white leaves
    • 'Blauer Heinz': proven, very short variety with a maximum height of 60 centimeters and beautiful, blue-green foliage
    • 'Elegantissima': attractive bicolor foliage, cultivar produces dark green leaves with a white edge
    • 'Green Gem': robust, very short variety with a maximum height of 80 centimeters
    • 'Handsworthiens': robust, tall-growing variety up to three meters tall, perfect for privacy hedges
    • 'Marginata': tall cultivar for privacy hedges with attractive, yellow-edged foliage
    • 'Rotundifolia': robust, tall growing up to four meters tall and beautiful, dark green foliage
    • 'Suffruticosa': proven variety for bed borders, only grows to a height of one meter

    Small-leaved boxwood (bot. Buxus microphylla)

    The small-leaved boxwood is widespread in Korea and Japan in particular and is traditionally part of the characteristic planting of a Japanese garden. The species grows weaker than the common European boxwood, but is less sensitive to the dreaded harmful fungus Cylindrocladium buxicola. On the German market, the species is available in two varieties:

    • 'Faulkner': beautiful variety with a natural spherical shape, grows up to two meters high and just as wide
    • 'Herrenhausen': proven, low variety with a maximum height of 60 centimeters and beautiful, dark green foliage

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Vegetable garden