Boxwood Care: Growing Buxus sempervirens

title: "Boxwood Care: Growing Buxus sempervirens"

Buxus sempervirens — common boxwood — has been a foundation of formal American and European landscapes for centuries. Per Missouri Botanical Garden, it is "one of the oldest documented ornamental garden plants." Dense, fine-textured evergreen foliage holds its form under shearing, making it the standard choice for formal hedges, parterres, and topiary. The serious problem: boxwood blight, a devastating fungal disease that has spread across the United States and now threatens boxwood plantings everywhere east of the Rockies.

I don't grow boxwood in my Long Island yard. This guide is sourced from Extension publications.

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Species and cultivar selection

Buxus sempervirens — common boxwood. Per Missouri Botanical Garden, grows 15–20 feet tall at maturity without pruning; 'Suffruticosa' (English boxwood) stays more compact at 3–5 feet. Zones 5–9. Most susceptible to boxwood blight.

Buxus microphylla and varieties — littleleaf boxwood and Japanese boxwood. Per NC State Extension Plant Toolbox, more heat-tolerant than B. sempervirens and somewhat more resistant to boxwood blight. 'Winter Gem' and 'Green Mountain' are common cultivars.

Buxus sinica var. insularis (Korean boxwood) — per Penn State Extension, very cold-hardy (zones 4–9), better blight resistance than common boxwood, and lower susceptibility to boxwood leafminer.

Deer resistance note: Per Rutgers NJAES, boxwood is rated as "rarely damaged" by deer — an important characteristic for Long Island and other high-pressure gardens.