Speciemens buxus

Buxus Specimens

		balearica A Mediterranean species which can still be found growing wild on the exposed, rocky cliffs of N. Mallorca and in Spain. It has the largest leaves of the European boxes, 3 -4cm long, of a thick and leathery oval shape. In its native habitat when exposed to strong winds and heat, the leaves roll up around the stems forming a protective tube. Grown in the U .K., it becomes an open, branched tree which becomes hardier with age; it can be seen in the Chelsea Physic Garden as a 10m tree.
		*bodinieri* A beautiful, long-leaved species from China, suitable for London and warmer counties, and it is a lovely container specimen. The lustrous, emerald-green, long, obovate leaves, notched at the apex, are wider than those of the similar B. harlandii. The many thin, flexible stems grow closely upright at first, fanning out at the top to form a graceful bush.
		*glomerata* The first of our Cuban collection ofBuxus. Cuba has some 30 species ofbox, none ofwhich are in cultivation yet. They are of great diversity of foliage and habit and of considerable botanical interest, although strictly for conservatory conditions here. Langley Nursery is sponsoring the formation of a National Collection of Cuban box to be held in the Jardin Botanico Nacional in Havana. This project, started in Spring 1995, will ensure the conservation of these endangered, highly endemic species for future scientific study.
		*harlandii* The B. harlandii in circulation is probably not the true species from South China, which is tender and not in cultivation. However, it is a box ofunique form and beauty, of similar but taller habit to B. bodinieri above. The elongated, bright green, silky textured, pointed leaves which clothe its upright, slender stems lend it a bamboo-like appearance. It grows to about one metre. It is a good container subject, needing winter shelter in cold areas.
		harlandii 'Richard' A tender rarity which originated in Louisiana as a sport of B. harlandii. Examples can be seen growing at the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens and Arboretum, showing its striking, bright, flat leaves with their apical and marginal indentations growing closely along the yellow stems. It is a short bushy plant of brilliant green.
		*macowanii* This South African box has a fascinating grass-like juvenile foliage in its early years, before it assumes a mature, rhomboidal leaf of thicker texture, 1.5 cm long. In its native habitat, often coastal forest on sand dunes, it will become a tall-stemmed timber tree. Here, its attractive feathery habit would suit it to conservatory or atrium use.
		*riparia* This is a fascinating rarity from Japan, where it would be found on stony river banks. With its low, miniature willow-like appearance, it brings a very Japanese look to planting schemes. Rockeries, containers or banks display its procumbent grace well. The leaves are lanceolate on silvery branchlets. Not for colder areas.
		wallichiana This species is something of a collector's piece from the Himalayas. Of particular interest are the glittering, very long, narrow, lanceolate leaves and the shining, chestnut-coloured leaf scales on the pointed leafbuds. It becomes hardier with age and develops into a feathery small tree, worth some winter protection when young.
		Buxus microphylla
		*microphylla* This box of Japanese origin was the first named of an important group of Asiatic boxwoods, although it is probably only a garden form, never having been found in the wild. This has subsequently created some taxonomic confusion. The type is a low, widespreading bush, totally smothered in smooth, narrow, lanceolate, 1.5cm leaves, apple-green in colour on dense wire-thin stems. Very easy to grow, it soon forms a wide mound. Often adventitious short rootlets are produced on the stems. As with most of the B.microphyllas, some shade is beneficial.
		'Compacta' The smallest of the dwarf boxwoods,B. mic. 'Compacta ' is a fascinating tiny bun of tightly growing, curled leaves, 0.5cm long of assorted shapes. Originally known as the 'Kingsville Dwarf' when, asa seedling plant, it was grown by the Kingsville Nurseries in America. Good for trough gardens or on a shady rockery, it is unfortunately rather scarce in supply. It can sometimes sport untypical, larger growth, which should be removed.
		'Curly Locks' A descriptively named, larger growing, sport of B. mic. 'Compacta , above. The habit is unique, with sinuous long branches clustered with bunches of minute curled leaves in the axils of the older leaves. It is an unusual and interesting box with bright, light green leaves.
		'Faulkner' 'Faulkner' is an outstanding, newly available, very useful boxwood. It is of somewhat hazy provenance. The rounded leaves are a sparkling emerald-green all year and it shows considerable drought tolerance. It makes a good edging or low hedge, or can be allowed to spread as a bright ground cover. The winter stems are a shining chestnut brown.
		'Grace H. Phillips' A channing, compact B. microphylla from the USA. Miniature, cuspidate, recurved leaves grow tightly together, forming a crisp- surfaced, mounding small plant.
		'Herrenhausen' A low growing variety that forms a frothy mound of matt-green leaves. Similar in style to 'Tide Hill'
		'Helen Whiting' 'Helen Whiting' is also from the USA -a more vigorous sort than its mother plant 'Compacta'. It is a small spreading cultivar with many tiny, lanceolate leaves covering the short stems; it fonns a richly green, lacy looking plant, very scarce in supply.
		'John Baldwin' Ideal for the small garden, this box has small, even-sized oval leaves, blue sage-green colour. It is a sturdy, hardy box of dainty texture, attaining 1.5m over ten years. It comes from the grounds of the College of William and Mary in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, where there are extensive boxwood plantings.
		'Rococo' Similar to 'Herrenhausen' but more vigorous. Ideal for low ground cover or informal, loose edging.
		microphylla var. japonica The 'common box' of Japan. Untrimmed this is not a very shapely plant varojaponica owing to its fonnless habit. The four-angled stems are silver grey and quite stout. The leaves are a rounded thumb-nail size, shining, pale green, mainly flat. The usual fonn cultivated here ( called B. rotundifolia by the Italians ) is not winter hardy in cold areas. As a shaped, rounded bush or spiral, the summer foliage is a lovely fresh green; however there is a surprising autumnal change to quite vivid colours of orange, red and brown, until it greens up in January. A handsome tall-growing fonn is cultivated in Japan for its highly valued timber, maturing at 2-300 years.
		'Green Jade' A new introduction from Boskoop, Holland, with unusual cupped, round leaves of pale green, which becomes a mound, wide rather than high. This plant loves shade.
		'Green Pillow' A seedling of B. mic. japonica which forms a symmetrical, cheerful green dome of tight, small obovate recurved leaves. Extensively planted in the White House rose gardens in Washington. D.C., this is a most endearing plant which becomes a perfect hemisphere. Examples can be seen on the scree beds of the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens and Arboretum near Winchester.
		'Morris Dwarf' This cultivar is a natural seedling of Japanese boxwood that is a sturdy slow-growing mound. It has a slightly tufted outline owing to the uneven clustering of the shoots which give it an interesting texture. The oblong leaves are a dark olive-green and thick textured, about lcm long.
		'Morris Midget' An interesting dwarf cultivar from the same seedling batch as 'Morris Dwarf' with a similar appearanc'e. It is considered to form a slightly smaller, smoother shaped plant, becoming a firm hummock of thick textured, dark green small leaves, notched at the apex. Annual growth is about 3cm.
		'National' 'National' is a sturdy tall shrub, growing annually about l2-15cm with a good leading shoot. It is hardier than the common B. japonica with larger and much darker leaves, showing quite pronounced veining. The effect is of glossy, luxuriant growth.
		var. japonica f. yakushima In the wild botanical paradise of Yakushima Island, south west Japan, the native box has adapted to the rains, mist and snow at high altitude. It has survived for centuries in the mysterious ancient mixed forest covering the mountain amongst the sumptuous pink-flowered Rhododendron yakushimanum that blossoms on summit clearances. We are watching these box plants with interest, as they are not quite sure how to behave in their new surroundings at Langley, where we grow them under trees. This highly variable ecotype grows upright or spreading, with obovate or elongated emerald green leaves. t
		rugulosa We are fortunate to have this rare species, which was found on a shaded var. intermedia cliff-like site in N.W. Nepal. It is an unusual looking box which could be mistaken for a small, glaucous-leaved Hebe. The oval leaves are very uniform, close, and a lovely grey green colour. The growth is only 2 or 3 cm per year.
		*Buxus sempervirens*
		This is our native common box, cultivated through the centuries for its dense, cheerful, green foliage and its highly prized wood. The name Buxus is derived from its use in ancient Greece for finely carved small boxes, for which their word was pyxos or pyknos. The rootwood is even harder and paler and is known as dudgeon. It has been described as man's oldest ornamental plant and it is unsurpassed for topiary work. Apart from the variegated or weeping forms, there are some with large leaves and stout growth of treelike habit (the Latifolia cultivars) but the typical common box used for topiary and hedging has small pointed leaves the size of a little finger nail. There are many selected forms cultivated. Ancient wild stands ofbox can be seen at Box Hill in Surrey and Chequers in Buckinghamshire.
		'Angustifolia' ('Longifolia') There are several forms of box having elongated willow-like leaves, but the shape of cv. Longifolia is rather distinct. When young, the many upright growing stems form a feathery, vase-shaped bush, the narrow lanceolate dark leaves shining elegantly. When restricted to a single stem, it forms a graceful small tree or standard.
		'Argenteo-variegata' ('Argentea') A low growing, wide-spreading variegatedsempervirens cultivar with a pleasing, silvered look, particularly in winter. Long, somewhat puckered blue-green leaves are narrowly outlined in pale yellow.
		'Aurea Pendula' The variegated golden weeping box is a graceful slender shrub or pendulous mound. The smooth, long leaves are brightly streaked with yellow, excellent as winter colour.
		'Aureovariegata' Primrose and green streaked long leaves on this upright-growing box are similar to those of B. s. ' Aurea Pendula'. It becomes a medium- sized, naturally oval bush of bright feathery appearance.
		'Blauer Heinz' A very compact newly available cultivar with strikingly glaucous, blue-green foliage, ideal for hardy edging or mixing in the flower border, requiring little maintenance. Selected by today's gardeners at the Herrenhausen gardens, Hanover, created by the Electress Sophia, the mother of George Ist, 'Blauer Heinz' is a highly desirable and useful box.
		'Elegantissima' The best known variegated box. Of attractive light habit, it grows slowly to become a flame-shaped bush. The small pointed leaf has a wide, irregular, cream-coloured edge with an olive green centre, giving a delicate primrose coloured effect, at its best in winter.
		'Graham Blandy' This is an exciting columnar form from the United States, reputed to have been sent out by Kew or Edinburgh Botanic Gardens years ago, though there is now no trace of an original plant here. We consider it a major addition to the range of fastigiate, broadleaved evergreens. Its slender outline makes it ideal as a focal point and it is particularly suited to the small garden. It grows in ten years to something over 1.5 metres.In the USA it is known as 'Graham Blandy'.
		'Handsworthiensis' A distinctively different hedging box with stiff, upright branches, which is not suitable for topiary. The recurved leaves are oblong shape, olive or dark sage green, sometimes with a glaucous overlay. Terminal shoots and leaves are orange tinted in autumn, with the leaf size diminishing markedly at the stem tips. A good strong-growing plant for screening.
		'Langley Beauty' A most gracefully branched, slightly pendulous, taller box with luxurious long pointed leaves; a great choice for use as a specimen plant for year-round beauty.
		'Latifolia' B. sempervirens and its cultivars can be subdivided into those with " small/medium leaves -the majority -and those with much larger, thumbnail-sized leaves, the Latifolia types.
		'Latifolia Macrophylla' This describes the largest leavedB. sempervirens and there are several varients. We have two fine examples in B. s. 'Ickworth Giant' and 'Kensington Gardens'.
		'Latifolia Maculata' The 'sunshine box', with softly yellow spring leaves which become marbled and streaked with lime green through the summer. The densely growing, domed bush retains its gilded appearance throughout the winter and annual clipping encourages more golden foliage. It is a first class, older cultivar, now being better appreciated.
		'Latifolia Pendula' An impressive angular mounding bush of great character, branching stiffly downwards from a broad head. The leaves are almost rhomboidal, dark olive or glaucous green, angled slightly upwards from the midrib. Broader than high, it builds up to a strongly architectural form for specimen planting.
		'Marginata' A reliable variegated boxwood of upright growth, thought to be a sport of cv. Handsworthensis and with a similar growth habit. The strong leaf has an irregular golden or lime-coloured edge around the top portion, the centre being an olive-green. The leaf itself is slightly undulating, rather wide at the base, about 2.5cm long. It is a good, softly coloured hedging plant.
		'Memorial' An excellent cultivar from the USA with an interesting history. Though closely resembling B. semp. 'Suffruticosa' in its tight structure, it grows more quickly. The leaf is darker and recurved, whereas 'Suffruticosa , tends to have a spoon-shaped leaf. ' Memorial' naturally forms a perfectly shaped, oval bush. It would make a full-bodied hedge.
		'Myosotidifolia' A finely leafed box with many narrow oblong leaves of bluish olive- green. The stems are yellow-green, the new growth glaucous. It grows to about one metre in ten years in almost columnar form, then gradually fills out. It has an attractive texture.
		'Myrtifolia' This is a little known elegant box for specimen planting. The narrow dark leaves fan away from the stems, the lateral branchlets being rather pendulous, the tips uptilted. It grows slowly to over 2m.
		'Parasol' This large-leafed box becomes a round-headed, pendulous small tree. The branches are heavy with long thick textured, pale-green leaves with a slight twist at the tips. An impressive specimen plant, which is very beautiful after rain.
		'Pendula' This has dark green, narrow leaves, which are widely spaced on slender branches and lateral branchlets, which fall in long, willow-like trails to the ground.
		'Prostrata' A vigorous bush of great character with wide spreading, low branches and heavy , large leaves covering the pendulous branchlets. It has a useful ability to grow under trees or on banks in conditions of quite dry shade, forming a good evergreen ground cover. Although naturally wide spreading, it can be restricted by pruning.
		'Pyramidalis' The descriptive name for a broad based, conical form of B. sempervirens with large, shining leaves. It is a steady grower, suitable for screening or specimen planting.
		'Rosmarinifolia' An amusing, delicately growing. box, looking amazingly similar to the culinary rosemary , and it therefore should on no account be planted in the herb garden. The long, needle-like 1-2mm wide, linear, grey-green leaves are tightly ridged along the midrib. Under magnification it can be seen that the surfaces are covered in silvery hairs and the tissues bulge in a rather monstrous manner. It is a wispy-Iooking cultivar, slightly tender.
		'Rotundifolia' The leaves are rounded-obovate to broad ovate, 25mm long and 15mm wide. At Langley Nursery we cultivate a fine, glossy-Ieafed, strong- growing' Rotundifolia ' which looks handsome when shaped into a dome or globe. The rounded, pale green spring leaves are delightful. An impressive shrub.
		'Salicifolia Elata' A beautiful foliage tree which should not be confused with B. s. 'Longifolia', as it grows in a more open manner with more widely spaced but equally glossy, very long leaves. It can be trained as a graceful, small standard.
		'Suffruticosa' The much loved, traditional dwarf box, its long name meaning 'small and shrubby'(called 'Pumilanana' by the Italians). Today it is not often found in garden centres. The shining, small leaves are a rounded oblong, often notched at the tip and slightly cupped, the veining and midrib paler and slightly raised. The dense, richly green leaves give this box an unsurpassed air of quality, added to which is its elusive, mown-hay fragrance in warm weather. It may be kept severely clipped for dwarf edges but, when left to grow freely, it forms sculpted, cloud-like mounds which are always pleasing. Trim hedges in June when the new growth has matured, or before the end of August.
		'Vardar Valley' A wild form collected in Yugoslavia and popular in the USA where it is valued as a foundation plarit. 'Vardar Valley' is a strong, dense growing box which forms a striking, flattened, wide mound, having broad ovate, dark leaves, often glaucous. It forms a fine specimen in time..
		ssp. hyrcana From the Caspian Sea area of Iran, it is somewhat tender at first. It is a graceful shrub which in its moist, mild native climate attains some stature. The very bright-green, pointed leaves hang and flutter prettily. Here it does not grow very large.
		Sheridan Hybrids
		'Green Gem' A Canadian hybrid of great hardiness which will tolerate cold prairie winters. It is a dainty, globose bush with narrow, oblanceolate, dark olive-green leaves. It can be trimmed as a neat hedge or informally grouped as green mounds.
		'Green Mountain' A hybrid of B.sempervirens and Korean box, this Canadian cultivar attracts much attention and is easy to grow. It grows taller than 'Green Gem' , is similarly dense and the leaves are darker with more shine.
		'Green Velvet' A third Canadian hybrid, this is a choice plant, of full-bodied shape. The leaves are larger than those of its siblings, flat and pointed, and their fresh summer growth matures to a deep winter green.
		sinica This is the 'common box' of China. China has well over 20 species and sub- species of Buxus and is the centre of its diversity in Asia. The Korean and Japanese species are closely related. In cultivation in the UK, it grows as a bright green, mther horizontally branching shrub, hardier than B. mic. japonica, and there is little botanic difference except for the presence of more stem hairs. It flowers freely and framntly in spring. As with our own B. sempervirens, leaf shape and plant forms vary.
		sinica var. insularis This is the boxwood of Korea. In the wild it can be found growing at the side of streams or on rough granite hillsides. Its basic form tends to Ibe of multi-stemmed, twiggy habit With obovate, small, thick leaves with revoluted margins, dull or glaucous green in colour. In many instances, the winter leaves become rust-brown due to bright light and cold conditions. For this reason the best forms for garden use are the hybrids and named cultivars, which are very hardy and retain their deep green colouring.
		sinica var. insularis 'Filigree' A surprisingly different-Iooking Asiatic boxwood with pale, sea-green, orbicular leaves spaced along the long arching silvery branches. It forms a frothy, lightweight mound, growing well under trees and in quite dry, shady situations. When magnified, one can see the beautiful elegance of the stem and leaf structure.
		sinica var. insularis 'Winter Gem' This is a hearty medium-sized box with brilliantly shining, round leaves and mahogany coloured stems. The habit is more spreading than upright. It can be successfully used as an infonnal hedge or as pleasing evergreen ground cover. Its correct name is probably 'Winter Gem'.
		'Justin Brouwers' This is a superb seedling cultivar of fme form and colour. It was for years known as the 'cat's grave seedling', after a Williamsburg landscaper planted it on the grave ofhis favourite cat; now it has been registered under a more dignified title. It becomes a rounded, medium- height, cone shape with an outstanding depth of colour and density. The leaves are small, close and pointed. Very hardy, with glowing winter colour, it can be used as a specimen or as hedging.
		'Pincushion' Another of the named dwarf cultivars of Korea with thick, rounded, ovate leaves, approximately 1 cm long of matt texture. It is somewhat more open in habit than its name suggests. Flowering fragrantly and heavily in spring, it is a good rockery plant for full exposure.
		'Tide Hill' This is a popular American cultivar, a low soft mound of lanceolate, shining, pale green leaves. It is almost indistinguishable from B. microphylla. An excellent container subject which enjoys light shade, it can be trimmed around the edges to restrict it to the required size; it is enchanting even when small.
		'Winter Beauty' A tough Korean box with the typical thickly textured small oval leaves and quiet sage green colour of its species. Of low, mound-forming growth, it flowers heavily in spring, attracting many bees. In winter, random branches acquire bronze hues.