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| On the south side of the house, I have 7-8 (unknown variety) boxwood planted that receive full sun all day all year. They were planted in the fall of '09 and are around 2-3' tall. During the spring, summer, and fall, they grow normally and look healthy. About late December they start to turn brown and suffer pretty rapid dieback. I had to replace 3 this spring and now they are doing it again. Also, 2-3 boxwood plants that suffered little dieback this past spring are already browning outer foliage greater than they did all last winter.
My question is, is this spot too "sunny" for the boxwood? When I bought the replacements in the spring, they were labled as "part shade" plants but since the rest of the boxwoods were doing good (some just a few feet away that get much more shade are doing great), I didn't pay much attention to it. If it is too much sun, what would be a good replacement? Requirements would be sun loving evergreen or having great winter interest with berries or colored stems, narrow in stature or able to remain healthy when pruned to stay narrow, and able to tolerate dry conditions. It seems the south side of the house is the driest to me, that spot in particular. I do have a soaker hose that runs through so it gets adequate moisture in the growing season. This winter has been VERY wet and still they burn out on me. I was thinking maybe some kind of holly but need direction. I detest the hollies with pointy leaves as I took many a fall into mom and dad's Holly Wall of Pain while playing basketball back in the day. The wife HATES WITH A BURNING PASSION anything juniper or similar looking lol so those are out. I will post pics of the shrubs and setting tomorrow. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| It is all starting to come back to me now... in the spring, the ones that didn't die to the ground had to be intensely pruned to remove the dead branches and growth save for 1 plant that, go figure, gets the most shade of the bunch. The pruned boxwoods responded very well to the pruning and grew very well this year. I left out the growing space. It is around 20-25' long but very narrow, probably 2' or slightly less in width. It is between the garage and a paved walk to the front door. John |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Tue, Jan 10, 12 at 18:39
| hey jon ... seriously now.. refer to the link below.. wherein i said: have you ever stopped to ponder .. what is involved in evolving into a species that repeatedly slams its own head into solid wood.. whats that all about .. i mean really .. i might do it every now and then.. but sooner or later.. i figure out a better way to accomplish whatever i am doing ... ===>>>> they fail in your garden.. i will yell ...HOW MANY TIMES WILL YOU REPLACE THEM ... what??? ... you cant come up with a single other plant for that spot ... seriously dude.. snap the beak on with the rubber band holder.. and start beating your head on the wall ... crimminey ... rotflmbo .... ken ps: well i read the rest of your post.. kinda took the wind out of my rant.. lol .. need a picture ... welll.. there was the rant of sitting wifey down.. and explaining to her that you want to paint the living room orange.. and if she objects.. then explain that she can have the house decorating .. if you can have the garden .. lol .. |
Here is a link that might be useful: link
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| lol Ken, yes I am DONE with boxwood in that spot. I failed a basic reading comprehension opening post on another forum this morning myself so no big deal ;) She hates juniper looking things (ie most conifers) though. I brought home a Cedrus deodara 'Verticillata Glauca' that captured my heart all spring and summer and when I finally brought it home she called it a Charlie Brown tree :p She is coming to tolerate it now... |
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| j0nd03, Check out the previous thread that I linked, especially the last two posts. The thing that throws me off about your case is that you mentioned it happens in the Winter. Are you sure that you aren't talking about normal bronzing? This happens to boxwoods only in the Winter, when they are in full sun. The plants green up again beautifully in the Spring. With bronzing, there is no stem dieback, only leaf color change. My experience is that the Boxwood Decline, mentioned in the link, happens as a slow death, over a period of years. If you are talking about what we usually call English Box, they overwinter happily in zones much colder than yours. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Previous Boxwood Thread
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| Thanks Sam. I think it almost has to be something about the placement they don't like. I have boxwoods that are the same species 2-3x as large nearly adjacent to them around the corner that get shaded by the garage from morning sun. They are perfectly healthy and green without a single dead branch. It only seems to affect the ones by the walkway. I don't think it is bronzing because the stems snap and the foliage is dry and crispy not just discolored. It has been a whole 3-4 days since I have seen them so pics tomorrow morning will refresh my memory ;) I don't think it is necessarily disease affecting them. As I mentioned before they grow and look great spring, summer, and fall. Its weird huh |
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| Here we go. Second pic shows the 2 shrubs that get the most shade...
And here are a bunch of healthy boxwoods that are bronzed a little but no more than normal. The first one looks a little worse in the pic than it does in person...
And, yes, I know there is grass in the bed! |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Wed, Jan 11, 12 at 12:25
| ohhhh jon .... foundation plantings are planted to hide the foundation ...NOT PLANTED ON THE FOUNDATION ... get rid of them all and do not replant ... anything!!!!1 there should be at least a 2 feet walking area ... especially on older houses that need maintenance and painting ... behind your first plant.. including the canopy ... and the house your problem could be as simple as cement leaching.. or cement interfering with the delivery of proper water .. as to that very small strip .. take every thing out.. including the mulch.. put in some pea gravel .. and start collecting sedums ... the low growing ones.. totally drought proof... colorful.. near indestructible ... and very cool ... can take any variation on sun/shade ... see link you are stuck in a shrub box.. get the 7734 out of the box .. [punch that into the calculator and turn it over.. lol] first pic show a lot of space for gardening.. get out there .. and leave your foundation alone ... ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: sedums
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| What about mixing perennial wildflowers (such as coneflowers or black eyed susans etc) in with sedum as ground cover instead of shrubs? I bought some variegated sedum from lowes this year and they hung in a very long time until the sun and very high temps eventually baked all of them. I did like them while alive, though. I am interested to see if they come back this spring. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Wed, Jan 11, 12 at 15:27
| you are not going to retain windflowers in an 12 to 18 inch strip .. they are made for a meadow.. not individual planting ... they wont look right.. nor perform properly ... a lot of things like that flop.. and you dont need them flopping onto the walk ... i would consider .... some fan arbors with things like morning glory, clematis, etc ... or whatever is proper for the sun/shade variable.. go vertical.. since you have no depth ... or... think about tunnel arbors.. and plant out the side opposite.. and grow things over the arbor toward the wall ... what is the space opposite .... put an arbor flush with the wall.. with a seat.. to look at a proper garden on the other side of the walk ... heck.. lets get realistic... how often do you walk by this area ... if you want to get to the backyard.. dont you go out the backdoor 99.9% of the time .... how often do you go from the front to the back this way ... are you really so limited in garden space.. that you need to utilize this area???? .. i am thinking about the pea gravel.. and be done with it ... go grow things somewhere else [is this where you tell me its a condo.. and these are your only two spots????] heck .. your a tree guy.. what about espalier fruit .. again .. if the sun is sufficient ... check this link: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=Zm5&rls=org.moz illa:en-US:official&q=espalier+fruit&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&biw =1102&bih=953&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=wu8NT-6N PIevgwf61u3BBw boxwood --- schmockswood.. thank god you are moving on.. lol ... ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: link
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| I love the espalier fruit tree option but wonder if reflected heat from the brick wall would injure the fruit? It is as I mentioned earlier south facing full sun all day all year. I don't walk by it all to often but I see it everyday when I pull in the driveway. I am just not a big fan of the gravel look personally and I'm pretty sure the wife isn't either. We have a couple of neighbors who have this and she has never even given me the inclination she has noticed it. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Wed, Jan 11, 12 at 18:34
| i surely have no idea about z7 AR ... fer sure ... what about the trellis idea??? my morning glory grow in pure mineral sand, from free range seed [they just come back every year] .. with no extra water ... ever ... though they do much better with a slurp every now and then ... maybe you should post in the perennial or annual forums.. with a title about a 12 inch by 12 foot bed.. and ask for ideas .. frankly i almost didnt open this one because the topic was boxwood ... you might also try the fruit forum on the fruit issue ... someone was talking about espalier a while back ... ken |
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| Didnt have much daylight when i got home today but tried to envision a trellis between the windows and it looked good in my mind's eye. I still want to know whats wrong with the boxwood though |
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| John, Looking at your photos, I think what is killing the boxwoods is that the brick and concrete heat them up fast above ground in winter, however the roots are much slowing in warming. Result would be dessicated foliage due to the roots not being able to supply water quick enough. Compound this with that the sun is pretty strong at all times of the year here. The other thing is that on really cold days, that elevated volume of soil is going to get really cold too. Much like hill tops and bridges freeze first in winter weather. So it may be that the roots are getting colder than they like as well. But the fact that the shaded ones have managed better says it's probable the former IMHO. Now what to do for replacements. This I'm not as good at. But I like the sedums that Ken suggested. There are also a couple of native Yucca that could probable make it there just fine. Also ornamental grasses might be the ticket for winter interests as well. Perhaps Pink Muhle Grass. The locally botanical garden plants it along concrete paths, and in some rocky areas. I will ask the S.O. to see if she has any suggestions. Arktrees |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Thu, Jan 12, 12 at 8:24
| its probably the sidewalk that is killing them ... most plants can take full sun .. 'established' plants can take full sun ... most can even take full drought ... and that is usually because they cool off at night.. and have 8 hours to cool off.. and suck up lost water ... what the sidewalk does.. is hold the heat all night long.. not allowing a cooling off.. and recovery period .... i learned this with a brick patio ... when i could stumble out at 1am in august.. and it would still feel hot to my feet ... during the day.. in full sun.. you could fry an egg on it ... you could even walk out.. barefoot in winter.. if the sun had been on it all day long ... then.. add the double intensity of the sun heating the brick behind.. and frankly.. i bet you could cook a ham out there in august ... heck with ham.. bacon .. lol .. the plot is not wide enough .. period ... as to a tree ... getting it established will be the issue ... and you might have to protect it from direct sun for a year or two.. until it can grow the requisite roots to support itself ... the issue is not the boxwood per se [in and of itself] .. its the location ... what a book would call.. the CULTURE of the plant .. the ambient surroundings .... ken |
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| Alright, could not talk wife into any ornamental grasses or the sedum or a trellis (she has some interesting takes on all 3). She REALLY want bushes there but as a compromise we are just going to plant an assortment of day lillies there. Thanks for the help guys |
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| Did you look at Yucca's? The S.O. has a couple that are actually kinda nice. Can't think of the names at the moment. One has a red flower spike on it almost all summer long, and the other has an interesting flower spike as well. Both the hummingbirds and bees love. There are some that are evergreen as well, along with variegated Yucca's for more color. Anyway, do what you want of course. Just trying to make sure all the bases are covered. Arktrees |
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| I like to just call them "Yuc(k)s" ;) Go figure the wife loves them lol They would give a more formal look that she likes. I suppose the ones that look like mini palm trees with a 2-3' tall trunks aren't too bad. Any info on them? |
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| as well as any info you can dig out of her with the above mentioned specimens |
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| I will ask that she reply to you, as she is the one that did the homework on those. What I know is just what I absorbed from her. I don't tend to like them either, but I can't complain about the ones she planted. They are kinda interesting, and freaking tough as long as they have good drainage. Below is a link to what I think her red flowering Yucca is. Also Sooner Plant Farm has Yucca rostrara 'Sapphire Skies', which may be what you are thinking of for the shrubby type. Arktrees |
Here is a link that might be useful: Red Yucca
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| Well the autumn brilliance was 2for1 and the sapphire skies was 2for1 so it just made too much sense not to order. The SS reportedly after several years begins to form a trunk and can attain 5' in trunk height, which is interesting to me. I need to do more research on this one. I really like "Bright Star" too. |
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| LOL, sucked in by a good deal. Like I got room to talk. I bought a Paperbark Maple in the fall partly because it was such a good deal. I have to say SS is rather pretty IMHO, but then I love the color blue, so what else would I say. :-) I didn't even notice the 2:1 deal for those. Even if it can make it to 18', I doubt you and I will be worrying about it too much, cause that's going to be WAY down the line. You might look up just the straight species to see what is said about it. May give you some clues. I certainly would not expect it to get bigger than the species, and probable smaller due to colder climate and the extra wax making the blue color. Of course 5' may simply be the biggest any of them of had time to get to yet. Don't know. Arktrees |
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| Yuccas next to a walk sounds like a bad idea to me. Little kids, dogs, and nylons are all at risk. While quickly walking past a Yucca filamentosa I reached in real fast to pull a weed at the base of the plant. One of the swordlike leaves punctured my cheek all the way to my tongue. I got rid of the plant before I stopped bleeding. It took awhile to calm down. Other varieties aren't so threatening I guess. Mike |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Fri, Jan 13, 12 at 10:09
| how do you put the plant at the link.. in a 12 to 18 inch space??? did you ever tell us exactly how wide it is ..??? ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: link
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| What a horror story you have! I imagine if mine ever gets around head height I might never use the walkway :-) I am not sure of the stiffness of the blades/foliage of this yucca (or any yucca for that matter) but I'm sure if it poses a safety risk I will put it elsewhere. Children playing is also a concern. They were only $10 each so not a big loss if they aren't appropriate for the spot. There is another dry location in front of a smoke tree on a small hill away from the house that would be a good fit for them. |
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| Ken, the space is probably around 20-24" including the rock border. I am going to measure it tonight/tomorrow. The info on the height and spread appears to have been a little misleading on SPF website... I am sure they would be fine there for a quite a while but would outgrow the spot eventually. I really liked them and didn't do a thorough info check until they were already ordered. As I mentioned above, I may have to site them next to a smoketree. I could still cancel that part of the order, but I am interested to try them out. How about dwarf alberta spruce in that spot instead? ;-) |
Here is a link that might be useful: Placeholder
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Fri, Jan 13, 12 at 11:53
| no conifer is going to take the reflected heat of the wall.. and the trapped heat of the sidewalk .. in AR ... success will be right up there with boxwood ... you will regret the yucca ... horrible plant.. will kill you in your sleep given opportunity.. since motive is always there... a single plant will fit.. but when it start multiplying at the crown you will have trouble they are near impossible to kill.. including running them over with the car, as mine where at the end of the driveway ... plain old green ones and digging them out.. you may as well plan on digging 4 feet down ... and they will still come back ... i hated mine so much.. i moved just to be done with them ... and for a nickle.. i will tell you how i really feel ... ken ps: so you continue to insist in staying in the shrub forum.. for recommendations on perennials .. whats that all about .. there are hundred of peeps over there.. who never come to the shrub forum... of course.. being january.. its dead as heck |
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| LOL and the spruce was a joke. I know your disdain for the disease/mite ridden dwarf alberta spruce ;) |
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| this got cut off somehow- When I get all the boxwood dug up (hopefully this weekend) and get that small section cleaned out, I will post a new topic over there with bare bedded pics and see what they suggest. |
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| Arktrees asked me to tell you about my succulents bed, so here goes: I have Texas Red Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora, which is not a yucca), a Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium, also not a yucca), and an Arkansas Agave (Manfreda virginica, used be Agave virginica, and again, not a yucca). Those are my three tall plants. They all came from Pine Ridge Gardens. Look up a pic of the Rattlesnake Master just for kicks. It is the freakiest looking thing; it looks like something off an alien landscape in Star Trek. *lol* Nectar drinking insects absolutely love it; I get clouds of tiny butterflies and all kinds of little bees around it at the height of the season. I have four types of low growing and spreading sedums in various colors and forms to fill in around the base and provide contrast. |
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| Boy, it must be boring in the shrubs forum to get 31 hits on this!lol! Kidding aside, did you figure out what you wanted to do to replace those boxwoods? I was too lazy to read anything beyond the first couple posts. At the end of the day I'd just put some daylilys in the strip near the sidewalk and be done. You're planting too close to the house on the other ones. Rip that other stuff out in front of the boxwoods and put some nice 3-4' sized shrubs in there about 4' off the centerline of the plant to the house. |
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| Irishoney, we have quite a few of what I believe to be the species Eryngium yuccifolium across the ditch. Every time I looked at them in flower they had bees or other small winged nectar lovers on them :) Some got pretty big that grew close enough to some trees I planted and kept them out of the mowing path of the tractor. When we skimp on getting the back brushhogged we have quite a variety of beautiful wildflowers pop up all over. I need to take pics and get them ID'd this year. That manfreda looks wild with the fruit set on google pics! Whaas, you didn't miss much. I am going with day lilies the length of the bed and have no current idea for "conrnerstone" upright trees/shrubs at both ends of the garage. As for the other boxwood, it seems they are a favorite of the wife and as long as she lets me play with my trees, she can have the front flowerbed ;-) I will pass on your words of wisdom to her regardless. Spring can not get here fast enough! |
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