Things You'll Need:
- Miniature English Boxwood shrubs
- Shovel
- Fertilizer
- Stakes and string, optional
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Step 1
Measure and determine the number of shrubs you need
You have seen low green hedges in fancy English and French display gardens. What you probably don't know is how easy it is to get this look for yourself. Miniature English Boxwood is a shrub that is very cold and heat tolerant and can be easily grown in most garden zones. Deer avoid it which is another plus.
Just use a measuring tape to measure the total length or perimeter of the area where a low growing green hedge should go. Count on about one plant per linear foot. Decide how many Miniature English Boxwood plants you will need. Call around to garden centers to see which ones offer English Miniature Boxwood. After you get the plants home, water them well and then plant as soon as possible. -
Step 2
Plant the Boxwood Hedge
To plant the shrubs, use a stake and string to mark the center of the hedge or edging. Or alternately, use small stones or gravel or a white chalky substance like bone meal to mark the center line where you will plant. Dig a hole the depth of your plants in their pots plus another 50% deeper. For a long line of the shrubs, dig a trench 1 to 1 1/2 feet deep and at least 1 foot wide.
Fill about 25% of the soil back into the trench. You can add a little peat moss and bone meal to the trench to enrich the soil. You can also add granular fertilizer as your plant or water with a fertilizer that is mixed with water after planting.
Place the little shrubs 1 foot on center, that is with the center stem of the shrub the endpoint and the center of the next shrub 1 foot away. Stand back occasionally and check that the line of plants is straight. Gently fill in the trench then tamp firmly with your foot all around the shrubs. Water them well and then water again in 4 hours. Water at least every other day the first week or until the plants are established. -
Step 3
Maintain your Miniature Boxwood Hedge
Miniature English Boxwood grows only a few inches a year so at first your edging will appear to be charming green balls in a row. After a year or two they will grow together into a very slow growing hedge. In some English estates very old plants are three feet tall. It took several generations to get them that big.
Trim and water as you would any hedge. It is a good idea to trim only the really wild pieces that stick out the first year. After that gently prune only as much as necessary to make the plants uniform. Occasionally one of the plants will winter kill or be damaged. It is easy to replace with another plant. If your hedge is large, grow a few more shrubs in containers or another location so you will have several "replacements" on hand the right size as your original plant.
This glowing green color looks great with flowers. Look at pictures of English gardens to get ideas. Enjoy your miniature hedge. It will last a lifetime!
Comments
gartengrl said
on 8/18/2009 It's also a good idea to not perform a late season prune in winter country...as new growth will not be hardened off enough to withstand the cold and will turn brown.