Boxwood and Raised Bed Questions

9 years ago

Hi Gang,

I have a couple questions and am looking for general thoughts on planting a boxwood hedge row. I'm somewhat of a garden newbie and would very much appreciate feedback/suggestions/tips.

I'm looking to put in a privacy hedge row between my house and a neighbors. We purchased (10) 6' common boxwood shrubs. The hedge will be placed in an area about 15 feet long and 3-4 feet wide. We have a couple of beautiful, mature hydrangeas that will sit slightly in front of the boxwood. The yard slopes slightly. We live in the Boston area (zone 6).

Our plan is to build a raised planter bed for the Boxwood row...thinking this will help control drainage for the Boxwood, lower chances of root rot, add a nice terraced design element to the garden and....most importantly...keep the Boxwood hedge from competing with the nearby Hydrangeas (which are the crown jewels of our garden).

A couple of questions:
1) Anyone have suggestions on spacing for the 6' Boxwood row? We'd prefer to plant them right next to one another and gain immediate privacy...but not if it will sacrifice long-term health of the row.

2) The Boxwoods are currently in pots with burlap root balls. I anticipate about 2 weeks in the pots before the raised bed is built and we relocate other plants to new locations to make room for the raised bed and boxwoods. Suggestions on keeping the Boxwoods healthy during this time? Keep the root balls wet but not over-saturated?

3) Once the boxwood row is in, anyone have suggestions on complementary plants/shrubs to layer in front of the row? We like the 'purposefully overgrown' look. Our gardens are primarily a mix of sea grasss, hydrangeas, lilacs, hosts, sedums, and rhodendrums.

I'd love to get some feedback on the questions above and the forum's general thoughts on our setup before we put the Boxwoods down.

Thanks so much!

Comments (7)

floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
9 years ago
Can we just check those dimensions? You have 10 x 6 foot tall boxwoods??? How wide are they? I can't quite picture such enormous box bushes other than decades old specimens ... or imagine what they would cost.
rushwolf
Original Author
9 years ago
Sure...the Boxwoods are about 6' tall and maybe 1-2' in width. We went to a bunch of nurseries looking for tall, privacy shrubs. Most were in the $400/shrub range. We ended up buying these at the Home Depot for $99/each. Seemed like a steal given their size. Picture attached.
Related Professionals
Reading Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Hilo Landscape Contractors · Lake Worth Landscape Contractors · Mastic Beach Landscape Contractors · National City Landscape Contractors · North Highlands Landscape Contractors · Wickliffe Landscape Contractors · Auburn Window Contractors · Bay Point Window Contractors · Alameda Driveway Installation & Maintenance · Concord Driveway Installation & Maintenance · Baton Rouge Decks, Patios & Outdoor Enclosures · Justice Decks, Patios & Outdoor Enclosures · Medford Decks, Patios & Outdoor Enclosures · Novi Decks, Patios & Outdoor Enclosures
rushwolf
Original Author
9 years ago
One more picture of the boxwoods...they are just in temporary position right now until we build the raised bed. We also plan to add about 2 feet of additional garden space where the the lounge chairs are and move some of the seagrasses, etc to a new location. We'll finally add some smaller evergreen shrubs from the boxwoods to the gate and create a more pleasing transition there...
mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
9 years ago
You should probably post this in the New England forum unless a boxwood guru shows up.

Common box has hardiness issues. The usual recommendations are to buy Korean box, or at least Korean hybrids. They tend to be smaller plants than what you have pictured, though Green Mountain will eventually get that tall. Even the hardiest types of boxwood can winterburn badly if not sited properly. They require shade during the winter because their root systems don't tend to be deep enough to reach below the frost line. I'm afraid putting them in a raised bed is going to make that problem worse.

They may work in a sheltered, zone 7 microclimate. That will need local input.
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
9 years ago
OK - they really are that big! And that expensive ;-) I know nothing about the hardiness issues in your area but I have another question. Have they been clipped into columns or is this an upright cultivar which is naturally so narrow? If clipped they will easily fill out a fifteen foot bed.
rushwolf
Original Author
9 years ago
Mad_Gallica & Floral,

Thanks for both of your responses. I will post in the New England forum and see if I can get some local insight.

Floral- yes, they are clipped. If we put them along the 15 foot bed, I am sure the will fill the gaps, but I wonder how long it will take. My understanding is that boxwoods are sloooooow growers. We are so close to our neighbors and would like the privacy sooner than later, but perhaps some middle ground is needed on the spacing? Patience is a virtue, eh?
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
9 years ago
I'm still a little confused. If the planting area is 15 feet long and the bushes are 1 - 2 feet wide and you have 10 bushes don't they already fill almost a 20 foot length? I would definitely not plant them touching because they need some air circulation and root spread as they are establishing. How about compromising and giving them 6 - 8 inches breathing space between each one? That should fill in in one season.