The Boxwood Bulletin vol 63 Winter 2023/Spring2024

The Journal of The American Boxwood Society – Devoted to Our Oldest Garden Ornamental

THE BOXWOOD BULLETIN A Focus on Soil Health and Functionality

Event Recaps, Boxwood Book Updates, Highlights from Europe, Boxwood Care, Cultivar Selection, and more!

Winter 2023/Spring 2024. Volume 63.

The American Boxwood Society is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1961 and devoted to the appreciation, scientific understanding and propagation of Buxus. For additional information on the Society, visit our website at: boxwoodsociety.org

ABS Membership Levels and Benefits Membership in The American Boxwood Society runs annually, May 1 through April 30.

Dues can be paid online or by mail.

ABS Board President

Ms. Andrea Filippone. Pottersville, NJ

First Vice President

Mr. Kevin Collard. Leitchfield, KY

Second Vice President Position Open

Secretary

Ms. Cheryl Crowell. Winchester, VA

Treasurer

Mr. Mike Gaines. Sagaponak, NY

Executive Committee Representative Mr. Jonathan Kavalier. Vienna, VA

Directors

Class of 2024 Mr. Louis Bauer. Short Hills, NJ Ms. Kate Kerin. Salt Point, NY Mr. Fred Spicer. Highland Park, IL Class of 2025 Mr. Eric T. Fleisher. Pottersville, NJ Dr. Fred Gouker. Beltsville, MD Mr. Jonathan Kavalier. Vienna ,VA Class of 2026 Mr. Tony Boudreau. St. Louis, MO Dr. Bruce Chalker. St. Louis, MO Mr. James Saunders. Piney River, VA

International Registrar

Mr. Lynn R. Batdorf. Bethesda, MD

Ex Officio Officers

Mr. John Lockwood Makar. Scottsdale, GA Dr. David Carr. Boyce, VA

Executive Director

Ms. Patricia Reilly. Stafford, VA

Boxwood Bulletin Editor

Ms. Shea Powell. Union, ME Copy Editor Ms. Adrienne Phillips. Piney River, VA

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Individual .................. $60

Benefits: Annual digital subscription to The Boxwood Bulletin, member registration rate for Symposium, member discount for ABS conferences, one vote at the ABS Annual Meeting.

Family .................. $85

Benefits: Annual digital subscription to The Boxwood Bulletin, member registration rate for Symposium, member discount for ABS conferences, one vote at the ABS Annual Meeting.

Corporate/Business .................. $160

Benefits: Annual digital subscription to The Boxwood Bulletin, member registration rate for all employees to the Symposium, member discount for all employees to ABS conferences, one vote at the ABS Annual Meeting.

Student .................. $35

Benefits: Annual digital subscription to The Boxwood Bulletin, member registration rate for Symposium, member discount for ABS conferences.

Public Facility .................. $50 (US) | $70 (International)

Benefits: Annual digital subscription to The Boxwood Bulletin plus one printed copy of The Boxwood Bulletin

• Dues paid from January 1st through April 30th are applied to the upcoming year’s membership.

• Dues paid after May 1st result in a partial-year membership (dues are not prorated).

• Printed copies of The Boxwood Bulletin are available to members for $50 each. Members outside of the United States please add $20 (USD) for shipping.

Contributions

Monetary gifts to the Society are tax-deductible and may be applied to Research Programs, our Memorial Gardens Fund, our Publications Fund, and/or General Operations.

Connect with Us Email: amboxwoodsociety@gmail.com Write: American Boxwood Society Headquarters

P.O. Box 85, Boyce, VA 22620-0085 Visit:

boxwoodsociety.org

Cover: Symposium Participants at Luna Parc; Sunset at the Symposium

by Andrea Filippone; EBTS – France meeting at Chateau de Reignac in Carlux, Dordogne, France by L. Batdorf.

In This Issue 4 Listen to the Earth: A Focus on Soil Health 8 Dumbarton Oaks Ellipse Restoration 11 Circle Garden Renovation at CBG 14 Boxwood: An Illustrated Encyclopedia 2nd Ed. 16 European Boxwood Expedition 21 ­­MANTS 2023 22 Good Boxwood Blight AND Boxwood Leafminer Resistance?

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When is ‘food’ not a food?

Another great year at EBTS UK 2023 ABS Symposium ­­Gardening and Some Implications for Boxwood ­­Book Review - A Gardener’s Guide to Box ­­The Magic of Skyline Drive ­­Remembering Ronald L. Williams

Letter from the President Happy New Year to all boxwood enthusiasts and plant geeks! I hope this letter finds you all well and enjoying the new year. As the planting season winds down, I am constantly reminded that there is no substitute for boxwood. It is such a beautiful, lush shrub that enables us to design elegant spaces. Our primary goal as an organization is to educate and give the public the tools to deal with the current challenges we face with boxwood.

For this reason, the ABS Bulletin for the first time will shed light on the often overlooked importance of soil health in the management of boxwood and all other plants. For those who struggle to understand why our boxwood fail, please turn your attention to the soil.

Boxwood typically fail in compacted poorly draining soils. We hope that this group of articles will give you a better understanding of soil, and how we should honor and manage this valuable resource to ensure the success of our boxwood.

We hosted this year’s symposium here at Jardin de Buis in New Jersey, and did our best to provide an environment of inspiration and brainstorming.

Indeed, it was a good time for exchange of ideas and generating energy to move forward. We visited six memorable gardens and enjoyed two lectures that increased our knowledge of boxwood and soil restoration. One remark heard was that there was “inspiration around every corner!”

We have been filling open positions on the Board, and engaging individuals to serve on different committees. We are pleased to welcome James Saunders to the Board of Directors. James is thirdgeneration Saunders Brothers, taking responsibility

as Farm Operations Manager at the Saunders Harewood Farm. Bruce Chalker and Tony Boudreaux have been re-elected to the Board, and Jonathan Kavalier was voted to serve as the Board member on the Executive Committee. Bruce has volunteered for the Communications Committee web team. His experience in web development will benefit the ABS by supporting the webmaster, Shea Powell. Jonathan is assisting with the “Boxwood Bulletin,” and as part of the Executive Committee, will help guide our organization in our day-to-day business.

We are working hard to get the word out about The American Boxwood Society and our mission. We are focusing on education and best practices. This includes updates on new cultivars that are more disease tolerant and less susceptible to leaf miner, and a better understanding of soil management. Over the past two years we have published articles focused on our mission published in “The New York Times” and “The Washington Post”. This is a great help in spreading the word to more diverse groups and different areas of the United States.

On a sadder note, we will sorely miss Ron Williams who served as our second vice president. (Cheryl Crowell has written a memorial about Ron that you’ll find in this issue.) Last year Paul Saunders passed.

His dedication to and enthusiasm for boxwood was unsurpassed. ABS has been working to create a Paul M. Saunders Educational Fund in his honor. Hopefully this will help us engage a younger generation of boxwood enthusiasts. So please, with your financial support, help us build this educational fund into a meaningful tribute to Paul Saunders.

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Listen to the Earth: A Focus on Soil Health

by Eric T Fleisher of F2 Environmental Design

The following article focuses on soil and its importance in the landscape. This of course includes boxwood, which is the reason you are reading this.

All of the information and methods outlined in this article pertain not only to boxwood, but to virtually all landscape restoration.

What is soil? From a general perspective, it is: The natural loose covering over most of the Earth’s land surface, which among other things, serves as the medium for land plant growth. It is, however, so much more. We could not survive without soil. Soil is integral to sustaining all life on earth. Soil is a living biological system, of which plants and animals are an integral part. The soil feeds us, and in turn we feed the soils, a perfect symbiotic closed-loop biological system if we allow it to function as nature intended.

For this article we are going to focus specifically on the horticultural aspect of soil.

Soil provides four basic needs for plant growth 1. Root Anchorage 2. Water 3. Air 4. Essential Plant Nutrients (Elements)

Water and Air Provide:

Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H), and Oxygen (O)

Essential Plant Nutrients:

Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg), Sulphur (S) Micronutrients: Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn), Zinc (Zn), Copper (Cu), Boron (B), Molydenum (Mo), Chlorine (Cl), Cobalt (Co), and Nickel (Ni)

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In order for soil to perform optimally it needs to be made up of 50% solid particles by volume, and 50% pore space by volume which holds air and water.

How do we translate all this into a program by which we can protect and manage this valuable resource, to encourage it to optimally sustain plant life?

Structure is integral to how soils function. This

is where it is important to keep in mind that 50% pore space by volume is required for air and water to pass through. When soils are compacted, this physical requirement is compromised, often to the point of complete dysfunction. We can work endlessly on trying to improve our soils, but if we do not have the required air and water infiltrating through the medium, we will not have success. For most landscape purposes I like to see a minimum percolation rate of three inches per hour. Depending upon the existing site conditions, there are many different approaches to improving the drainage performance. This should be thought of as building the foundation of the soil profile.

Biology – Once we have established proper drainage,

(foundation) we can focus on building the biology, an efficient nutrient cycling system in the soil. Here we look at the biomass and the function of microbial activity in the soil. This needs to be well balanced and functioning as efficiently as possible. We choose our amendments and engineer the biological infusions carefully to achieve this goal of microbial balance.

Once achieved the landscape will need little if any additional input, other than maintaining that balance.

More heavily utilized landscapes, such as public parks and school campuses, will require more monitoring and input due to the high usage.

Examples

Expedia Campus in Seattle Washington In this project F2 Environmental Design was brought in specifically to optimize biological functionality of the soil on this 40 acre campus. We were sought out to achieve the following goals: 1. Optimize biological nutrient cycling to minimize any possible runoff or leaching of nitrogen and other chemicals into the Central Basin in Seattle.

Insure that all aspects of the rigorous standards of the “Salmon-Safe Puget Sound” program are met.

2. Develop an organic program of maintenance that will ensure soil health and functionality through construction and into maintenance. This ensures landscape health through construction, long term maintenance and avoids the use of pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides which are harmful to the soil biology, and the body of water that we are trying to protect.

3. Train contractor on how to follow the designed specific program.

We started by taking samples of all the different soil types that were being installed. We found a lack of beneficial fungal biomass as well as predatory presence (amoeba, flagellates and ciliates). Nutrient cycling was in the range of less than 25 to 75lbs of N per acre from microbial activity. We are looking for 100 to 150lbs of N per acre from microbial activity.

We developed biological infusions to boost fungal biomass and protozoans. Within three months we brought all levels to target exceeding our expectations.

What are the benefits of building a biologically balanced soil? Building, and encouraging a biological balanced soil, optimizes the natural nutrient

cycling capacity of the soil enabling it to perform to optimal potential. We are in essence mimicking the functions of nature eliminating and/or minimizing any additional amendments to the system. A fully sustainable, functional closed loop natural biological system.

So how does this help to achieve our goals at Expedia? By optimizing the biological balance in the soil, in this case increasing fungal presence and health, and protozoan populations, we increase the nutrient cycling capacity of the soils to a minimum of 100 to 150lbs of N per acre from microbial activity. The fungal component protects the roots, and is integral for the plant to absorb micro and macronutrients. The nitrogen is produced, at a regular pace that plants can absorb it, from the protozoans feeding on the bacteria. Because the macro and micronutrients are in a constant cycle within the balanced microbial system, the roots consistently absorb within this symbiosis. All this activity takes place in the upper rootzone so nothing leaches through into the lower root zone or the nearby body of water. The plants get all nutrients required without any synthetic inputs. Healthier soil, healthier roots, healthier plants, with only a positive impact on the environment.

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Results of test plot at Harvard University

Results of control plot at Harvard University

Harvard University

Our first challenge was to break through the nine inches of compaction within the critical area of I was nominated and awarded a Loeb Fellowship at the soil profile. The only way to do this and have a Harvard University in 2007/2008 because of the sustainable restoration, is to have the roots do the organic land management program I designed and work. In this case we found again that the fungal implemented at Battery Park City Parks in New York biomass and health, and protozoan populations City. During my time as Loeb Fellow at Harvard, I needed to be increased to optimize plant health convinced the institution to do a one-acre test plot and nutrient cycling capacity. We started with on campus utilizing my methods. They chose an area the aerators that Harvard had which would only at Harvard Yard, just inside the Johnston Gate and penetrate one and a half inches into the soil. We two other adjoining courtyards which had particular followed up with a half inch top-dressing of a problems with. After a complete assessment we found compost with good fungal biomass and protozoan that the following challenges needed to be addressed: populations. We then applied pelletized humate (a fungal food) and biological infusions, engineered for • Heavily Trafficked Soil high protozoan presence and diversity. We found that • Dense Compaction at 3ʺ to 10ʺ depth within six weeks, the roots had broken through the • Shallow Root Development compacted zones and grown a good eight inches into • Slow Water Infiltration in top 12ʺ of Soil the soil in all of the test plots. In the control plots that • Poor Nutrient Cycling Capacity had received aeration and the traditionally utilized • High Water Usage fertilizers roots had not grown past the top three

Applying biological amendments

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Resulting growth

inches. Harvard quickly chose to transition to my methods of maintenance in the rest of the yard. In the first season we eliminated the 9ʺ compaction zone, developed 10 to 15ʺ long roots, and Harvard utilized 50% less water than in previous seasons. Today we maintain 90 acres of the campus utilizing these methods.

Additional Projects We have done some really interesting work with Chicago Botanic Garden and Dumbarton Oaks. Fred Spicer and Jonathan Kavalier, have written great articles in this issue describing their experiences working with this program. These projects collectively cover the United States from coast to coast.

Summary We must make every effort to understand, and respect soil for the valuable resource that it is. It is integral to the health, and survival of all life on earth.

We come from the earth, and we go back to the earth.

We must understand how this fascinating biological system of soil functions within the big environmental picture in order to allow it to do the work that is its function. I have found it to be a rewarding life-long study. Nature gives us the signs and tells us exactly how to do it.

We must listen to the earth!

Biological infusions

Applying biological amendments to Boxwood at Harvard

Resulting growth that same spring

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Dumbarton Oaks Ellipse Restoration

by Jonathan Kavalier

Beatrix Farrand’s original Ellipse design, surrounded by a hedge of Buxus sempervirens ‘Suffruticosa’

The historic gardens at Dumbarton Oaks, in Washington, DC, are a chambered nautilus of intimate spaces, showcasing Beatrix Farrand’s design brilliance and a century of dedicated garden stewardship.

The Ellipse is a particularly serene space, formal in its design and contemplative in its atmosphere. It is a favorite space for meditation among the staff and residential fellows, and 18th-Century Provençal fountain has recently become an important habitat for aquatic fauna as it has been allowed to host a Box Walk lined with Buxus sempervirens ‘Suffruticosa’ largely native aquatic garden.

The Ellipse has undergone many changes since Beatrix Farrand initially envisioned it as a cohesive terminus for Box Walk, one of the main axes through the gardens which is comprised of a brick path and sequence of steps leading from the Urn Terrace to the Ellipse and is lined with Buxus sempervirens ‘Suffruticosa’ (English boxwood). Farrand’s original concept was to create “one of the quietest and most peaceful parts in the garden,” (Farrand 2022: 155) which she achieved by working with a large hedge of Buxus sempervirens (American boxwood) surrounding a greensward, interrupted only by a pool with a jet of water.

When the gardens were transferred to Harvard in 1941, Farrand noted the decline of the Ellipse boxwood, and wrote in her Plant Book for Dumbarton

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Oaks that “it is likely that many studies will be necessary before the replacement to the Box hedge around the ellipse can be satisfactorily solved” (Farrand 2022: 157). However, she never proposed a fully considered design for its replacement.

The boxwood hedge was removed in 1958 and Alden Hopkins, landscape architect and member of the Garden Advisory Committee at Dumbarton Oaks, implemented a substantial departure from Farrand’s original design, but successfully retained her intent for the Ellipse as a space of reflection and tranquility.

Hopkins’s design included the aerial hedge of Carpinus caroliniana (American hornbeam) that is still present today, as well as several fountain elements that have since been removed. The 18th-Century Provençal fountain was relocated to the Ellipse from

Alden Hopkins’ updated Ellipse. The relocated 18th-Century Provençal fountain was surrounded by an aerial hedge of Carpinus caroliniana

its former place in the Copse, a small woodlandinspired area, in preparation for the construction of the Phillip Johnson Pre-Columbian Wing of the museum.

Fast-forward 50 years, and the hornbeam hedge was in a state of serious decline due to many factors, including soil health and biology. In the winter of 2018–2019, after several years of careful planning and preparation, the hornbeam hedge was replaced with 76 new American hornbeams. These trees were grown locally and were trained to facilitate shaping them into an aerial hedge, in keeping with Alden Hopkins’s design.

In addition to replacing the trees, we conducted extensive soil diagnostic work, as this tree replacement project provided the rare opportunity to improve the soil ecology and structure in a way that is not possible with existing trees present.

Working with F2 Environmental Design, we planned work that would remove soil from the planting beds and improve it via the addition of structurebolstering sand and organic matter to create a customized soil blend, helping prevent compaction and enhancing the level of microbial activity, both important components of a healthy soil that will aid in prolonging the lives of the new trees.

This January will mark the 5-year anniversary of the tree planting, and the trees are a testament to the successful soil building. The project was an overwhelming success, and we didn’t lose a single tree, including the 10 back-ups that were planted in an on-site nursery. In fact, these nursery trees will need to be moved to permanent locations soon, before they grow too large for us to transplant.

In addition to the soil work, we went through a process to learn how to produce, assess, and apply a biological infusion (compost tea) meant to support diversity and activity of microorganisms in our newly mixed soil. Again, we enlisted F2 Environmental Design to lead a multi-day workshop on biological infusions. Prior to this workshop we invested in a high-powered microscope and some basic supplies to aid in our analysis of compost and infusions. “So many people focus on the chemical and textural makeup of the soil. We’re also focusing on the biological makeup,

F2 Environmental Design consulted on restoring beneficial microbes to the soil and developing a sustainable soil mix. The process was collaborative and educational, and resulted in a well-designed soil and a great learning experience for those involved.

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The updated Elipse surrounded by American hornbeams and featuring a sustainable soil mix

the life of the soil—bringing life back to the soil so it does what it has to do,” said Andrea Filippone, a partner with T. Fleisher in the firm F2 Environmental Design.

During the workshop we learned how to identify pertinent soil microorganisms such as flagalettes, aemeba, ciliates, nematodes, bacteria, fungal hyphae, and other structures. We not only learned how to visually identify these organisms, but what their presence tells us about the quality of the compost and/or infusion. Of course, the quality of the infusion is directly related to the quality of the compost used to brew it, but there are many additional factors including water quality, temperature, and level of aeration that can drastically alter the final product.

As our colleagues at F2 Environmental Design like to remind us, “It’s a process, not a product”.

The infusion is deemed ready for application only after pulling samples and analyzing them under the microscope in order to assess diversity of organisms, the presence of the desirable organisms, and the overall activity of the infusion. Once we are happy with the diversity and activity of the infusion, we end the brewing process and immediately apply the infusion by watering it into the target planting.

We initially learned this process to produce and apply infusions for the new Ellipse plantings to ensure the success of the new soil. And the infusions are one of the factors we credit with the success of the hornbeam project. In addition, this process

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has implications for plant health garden-wide, and especially in assisting our boxwood collection in combatting the numerous pathogens that affect them, including Macrophoma, Volutella, and Calonectria blights. In addition to the nutrient cycling that the microorganisms provide, one of their primary benefits is in repopulating the soil fauna following a fungicidal treatment. Fungicidal sprays have become a necessary practice in preventing disease, particularly Calonectria from infecting English and American Boxwood, especially in Spring and Fall when conditions are perfect for infection in the DC area.

In total, more than 25 people worked on the Ellipse renovation, from garden staff to contractors to the Maryland nursery to a local farm where new soil components were sourced. Dumbarton Oaks gardeners gained skills they plan to use in other areas of the garden, such as the roses and the Box Walk.

The Washington Post featured the renovation project in its pages. The aerial hedge will reform over the next few years as the trees grow—the start of what is hopefully a long, healthy life requiring minimal chemical inputs, thanks to the new soil mix.

Farrand, Beatrix. (2022). Beatrix Farrand’s Plant Book for Dumbarton Oaks (2022 ed.). (J. Kavalier, Ed.) Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University.

Photos: Dumbarton Oaks

Circle Garden Renovation at the Chicago Botanic Garden

by Fred Spicer

The alternating square center panel of boxwood as seen from the roof of the adjacent West Portico in the summer of 2017

The Waud Circle Garden is one of 28 beloved display gardens at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, IL. The purpose of the garden is to showcase creative annual compositions in three dramatic seasonal changes. The garden sits within a circular roadway adjacent to the West Portico of the Edward Larrabee Barnes-designed Regenstein Center (1976), and is a popular area for sitting and strolling among the beautiful plantings.

The Circle Garden’s current form was designed by Geoffrey Rausch of Environmental Planning & Design in 1997. The symmetrical and cross-axial design takes cues from the nearby building, and is atypical because a central planting panel occupies the long

axis with parallel paths astride it. Each path branches off the cross-axis into enclosed sitting areas that staff refer to as the “secret squares.” A low fountain is featured where the two axes intersect. Groupings and hedges of broadleaf and coniferous evergreens, and deciduous plants, create screening and separation from neighboring areas, and definition of spaces within the garden. Those plant masses also provide backdrops against which the annual designs are staged.

For the original framework in the center planting strip, Rausch called for intricate box parterres and curatorial staff selected Buxus ‘Glencoe’, Chicagoland Green™ and B. sinica var. insularis ‘Wintergreen’ for

The central boxwood panel of ‘Wintergreen’, ‘Glencoe’, and Chicagoland Green™ in the summer of 2017

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Despite heroic measures, ‘Wintergreen’, ‘Glencoe’, and Chicagoland Green™ boxwood in the center panel could not be reinvigorated even three years after the devastating January of 2019, when temperatures plunged to -25°F

the design. However, the parterres were not visually successful; in the words of former garden director Kris Jarantoski, they were “too precious” for the relatively small space. Architect Barnes suggested echoing the square building modules, and so the parterres were replaced in 2001 with a panel of square masses of alternating sizes, using the two Buxus cultivars originally chosen, for a total of 260 plants.

was killed outright. In the Circle Garden, the damage was considerable, and a number were immediately replaced, and we tried to nurse the others along. All manner of tender, loving plant care was tried in the following years, but we decided in 2022 to replace the entire box feature the following year. Brick paving, too, takes a beating in our demanding climate and it was decided to replace it as well, expanding the project’s scope.

Getting boxwood to thrive in the north shore Chicago suburbs, with punishing low winter temperatures and desiccating winter winds, is not impossible. But it can be trying even under conditions that are otherwise suitable. In the case of the Circle Garden, growing them next to annual plantings, where their adjacent roots are disturbed three times every growing season, doesn’t help. If you add regular pruning to maintain the design intent, frequent irrigation to promote the growth of the annuals, and the Garden’s heavy clay soils, you have a recipe for struggling plants. We ask plants in our gardens to do a lot, and the boxwood in this area are no exception, so numerous in-kind replacements of both selections were made over the years.

One other scope element was to be included: new soil in the boxwood panel, adjacent annual beds, and the center beds in the secret squares. In consultation with our soil consultant, F2 Environmental Design, it was decided to remove and replace the top 30ʺ of existing soil in the planting areas. After repairing underdrains, we built up the new soil layers beginning with a 4ʺ layer of specified sand; the rest of the soil profile was completed with layers of proprietary blends of compost, specified sand, and local loam.

The new soil is well-drained and moisture retentive, and promotes a healthy soil ecology over time, reducing the need for heavy fertilization.

While we kept Barnes’ design for the center boxwood panel, our curators decided to use only one Buxus In January of 2019, we were hit with low temperatures cultivar for the replanting. They chose B. ‘Wilson’, Northern Charm™, based on its small leaves, tidy, of -25°F. Despite about 18ʺ of snow cover, many compact size, and excellent past performance.

Buxus in our collections sustained significant injury.

This hybrid was selected by Wilson Nurseries, Inc., No doubt that microclimate influenced the degree Hampshire, Illinois, for leaf color, habit and hardiness. of damage across cultivars, but ‘Wintergreen’, in The semi-glossy, emerald-green foliage develops an particular, was hit very hard. A large planting in the Crescent, a Dan Kiley/Peter Meyer-designed garden, appealing bluish cast during the growing season, and

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The garden re-opened in September 2023 after the renovation with a refreshed center boxwood panel featuring Buxus ‘Wilson’, Northern Charm™

changes to a rich, dark green in the winter. We ended up increasing the spacing a bit with the new planting, installing 168, 2-gallon container-grown plants obtained from the originator.

The renovation project wrapped up in early September, just in time to welcome visitors back with a full fall display. With its vastly improved soils, new brick paving, and refreshed boxwood feature, the Circle Garden is ready to thrill and delight for many

years to come, and to be more resilient when the next brutal winter rolls through.

Note: Buxus ‘Glencoe’, Chicagoland Green™ and B. ‘Wilson’, Northern Charm™, are Chicagoland Grows™ introductions, and are licensed to growers through Plants Nouveau https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagolandgrows. Chicagoland Grows™ is a partnership between the Chicago Botanic Garden, The Morton Arboretum and the Ornamental Grower’s Association of Northern Illinois (OGA).

Looking east toward the West Portico of the Regenstein center, in late October 2023. Visitors returned to see new brick paving, a fully refreshed boxwood feature, and a stunning fall annual display befitting the garden’s purpose

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Boxwood: An Illustrated Encyclopedia 2nd Edition

by Lynn R Batdorf

In 2004, after 18 years of work, the first edition of my Boxwood Encyclopedia was completed. Published by the American Boxwood Society (ABS), this tome definitively described all the Buxus taxa in a hardback 8½ by 11-inch book in 343 pages including 335 images.

This first comprehensive nomenclatural reference of cultivated Buxus has proved to be an important contribution to the international community of botanists, taxonomists and horticulturists at botanic gardens and arboreta.

‘Unraveled’ Hines Nursery, Catalog, Brookshire,

Texas, US.1999. Selected by Bill Barr, Hines Nursery.

Jointly introduced by Yucca Do Nursery in Giddings, Texas and The John Fairey Garden (formerly Peckerwood Garden) in Hempstead, Texas, US in 2001.

Due to its usefulness and popularity, this highly specialized reference has been out-of-print for the past few years. However, a second edition will be published in 2024. Writing began in September 2021 with the “International Checklist of Cultivated Buxus L.”. This documented the nomenclature and provenience of all the known boxwood cultivars which would be described in the new edition. Just as significantly, the “Checklist” partially fulfills one of the strict requirements by the International Society of Horticultural Science (ISHS) Commission of Cultivar SIZE: Reported to mature at 4′ (1.2 m) tall and 7′ (2.1 m) Registration which appoints, and regularly recertifies, wide. However, the largest specimen observed in the ABS as the International Cultivar Registration cultivation is 24ʺ (60 cm) tall, 32ʺ (80 cm) wide.

Authority for Buxus.

HARDINESS: USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 7 to 10.

Who knew there are 1,522 different boxwood?

Readers of this new edition will know. Any question anyone might have about any boxwood cultivar, is answered in this new edition. Just for fun here is an typical, still incomplete, entry of a Japanese boxwood cultivar:

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HABIT: Typically single trunked, rarely multi-stemmed, shrub is widely spreading with a strong weeping habit.

LEAVES: Broadly elliptic to narrowly elliptic, with a retuse to obtuse apex. The relatively small leaves measure ¾ʺ to 1ʺ (20 mm to 25 mm) long and ½ʺ to 11/16ʺ (12 mm to 17 mm) wide.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The strong weeping habit typically results in numerous vigorous layered branches. Layered shrubs have been observed measuring ANNUAL GROWTH: First year growth is green and 48ʺ (1.2 m) tall by 10′ (3 m) and 6′ (1.8 m) wide. New strongly quadrangular measuring 2¾ʺ to 5½ʺ (7 cm to 14 growth on layered branches are between 3ʺ and 10ʺ (8 cm cm) in length. Second year stems are brown and round.

Internodal length varies from ½ʺ to 1⅛ʺ (13 mm to 30 mm). and 25cm!) with internodal length from ⅜ʺ to 1-3/16ʺ (1 cm to 3 cm).

SYNONYMS: B microphylla ‘Unreavealed’ Yucca Do Nursery, Inventory, Giddings, Texas, US.c.2013.

B. sempervirens ‘Unraveled’ Yucca Do Nursery, Inventory, Hempstead, Texas, US.2002.

DISEASES: Susceptible to Calonectria pseudonaviculata with a susceptibility estimate of -0.21 (Kramer, 2020).

GENETICS: A triploid (2n = 3x = 42).

HISTORY: ‘Unraveled’ was discovered at the Brookshire, Texas division of Hines Wholesale Nursery in the early 1990s. It was either a sport from one of the stock plants or perhaps a seedling block of B. sempervirens.

Recognizing a unique selection, it was brought to Yucca Do Nursery [closed in 2016] and Peckerwood Garden by Bill Barr at Hines. Grown at Peckerwood Garden, it was propagated and sold through Yucca Do Nursery originally offered as “Buxus sempervirens - Weeping form” in their 1998 Southern Catalog. Between 1999 and 2001 it was named ‘Unraveled’. While ‘Unraveled’ was first listed on the Peckerwood Garden 2002 catalog order form, it was introduced in 2001.

Dr

aft

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European Boxwood Expedition

by Lynn R Batdorf

Lynn Batdorf and his wife, Holly Hamilton, enjoying Manoir d’Eyrignac in Salignac-Eyvigues, France

Writing the 2nd edition of Boxwood: An Illustrated Encyclopedia presents a variety of challenges. The most important of these is correctly documenting all the known boxwood cultivars. Then, assembling up-to-date inventories of boxwood in domestic and international gardens (public and private) and collections (held by individuals, arboreta, and plant societies). Careful vetting of the correct identification and nomenclature of each specimen is necessary to avoid erroneous names and synonyms.

This requires a lot of traveling. While documenting all the US boxwood cultivars, I took two years to plan a European boxwood expedition. By the numbers, the trip took 26 days (May 20 to June 15, 2023) while visiting six countries – Poland, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France and England. I visited four National Buxus Collections, 18 public or private boxwood gardens and the largest boxwood nursery in Europe.

As a result, I successfully documented 266 Buxus taxa with 2,650 high resolution images and 37 pages of

Chateau de Hauteford in Perigord, France

Losse Castle in Thonac, France

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Attendees of Association Française pour l’Art Topiare et le Buis 2023 tour at Chateau de Reignac in Carlux, France

notes. This required staying in 13 hotels, flying 9,000 miles and driving 1,800 miles (one-way) in a rental car.

In addition to boxwood, I met various officials of all the European boxwood societies. They include: Gisela Rose-Sell, President of the German Boxwood Society; Eike Trumpf, Vice-President of the German Boxwood Society; Patrick Salembier, President of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society - France; Will McQuitty-Munnis, Chairman of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society – UK; Chris Poole, recent past Chairman of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society – UK. Many other hosts in their respective countries were exceedingly helpful as I studied their boxwood at world-class botanic gardens and arboreta.

The purpose of this expedition was to collect information to benefit the readers of Boxwood: An Illustrated Encyclopedia 2nd edition. Most of the images taken are close-ups of individual boxwood specimens and extreme close-ups of leaves, bark, pests, diseases, or other characteristics which distinguish it from other Buxus taxa. While the Encyclopedia will be filled with hundreds of these close-up images, none are shown here. Although the trip was exhausting with intense work documenting hundreds of cultivars, I was always surrounded by very kind and extremely intelligent hosts and, of course, some the most beautiful boxwood gardens in Europe. For their invaluable assistance, I am forever grateful.

World famous boxwood topiaries in the Jardins de Marqueyssac at Vezac, France and three of the four gardeners who sheared non-stop for hours, with great skill, efficiency and precision

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Chateau des Milandes at Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, France

Chateau de Hauteford in Perigord, France

One of the many gardens in the world-famous Herrenhausen Gardens, Hanover, Germany, with 12.5 miles of sheared boxwood

We spent two full days at the Arboretum Wojslawice in Niemcza, Poland A very small portion of the Poland National Boxwood Collection is shown

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A small portion of the German National Boxwood Collection in Iden

The world’s best example of B. sempervirens ‘Pendula’ exists at Herrenhausen Gardens, Hanover

Didier Hermans, Holly Hamilton, and Karin Hermans in Didier’s large Herplant Nursery, Beerse, Belgium

Collection Nationale de Buis, EBTS France, Ville de Touquet-Paris-Plage

The world-famous perennial border at Hillier Arboretum, Hampshire, England

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Inside the massive ancient, natural forests of B. sempervirens at Chiltern Hills, Buckinghamshire, England

The famous ‘Ruins’ at the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, England, with some of the tallest B. sempervirens in cultivation

Support and Donate to The ABS The American Boxwood Society would love to thank all of our current members and donors for supporting this great organization. Our mission is to promote the appreciation, scientific understanding, and propagation of the genus Buxus L. Our push for this year, 2024, is to increase our membership and educational outreach. Please help us by encouraging your friends to join The American Boxwood Society. We also invite you to support our mission-driven educational efforts by making a donation to the Paul M. Saunders Educational Fund.

Paul M. Saunders

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MANTS 2023

by Cheryl Crowell

The American Boxwood Society was once again in Booth #440 at MANTS in 2023, and what a difference this year from the last several! You could feel the excitement in the air and see it in the exhibitor booths and general attendance. People want to get out and garden! This is one of The American Boxwood Society’s biggest outreach projects of the year, and it was evident that the interest in landscaping with boxwood was high on everyone’s list as our booth was busy right from the start!

MANTS show statistics supported the wisdom of ABS’s decision to provide educational information at the event: · 11,300 company representatives and 3,400 buying companies registered for the show

Trust. FYI, the garden on display is Ron and Linda Williams’ garden in Indianapolis. We also wish to thank Saunders Brothers, Inc., for providing a selection of boxwood cultivars for us to display at our booth. Talking about boxwood is great and being able to see and touch them and make comparisons all in one place is an extraordinary educational experience.

Thank you again to our volunteers and members who stopped by to say hello.

MANTS 2024 is coming up January 10-12, 2024 and we invite our members to volunteer or to visit our booth!

Take it from me, you will find it very rewarding to be involved in this exciting event!

Go Boxwood!

· 85% of registered buyers either influenced or were final decision makers · 75% of attendees identified as owners, vice presidents, managers, buyers or sales and marketing professionals What a great group of people with whom to discuss the ins and outs of boxwood. We were especially pleased to introduce a new display booth, purchased with support from the James R. Wilkins Charitable

From left to right: Andrea Filippone, Mark Vedder, Kim Frietze, Eric T Fleisher, MJ Garcia, Louis Marmol

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Good Boxwood Blight AND Boxwood Leafminer Resistance?

Cultivar Selection and Proper Care is Key

by Holly Scoggins

Introduction Cultivar resistance is fundamental to the sustainable management of boxwood insect and disease pests, and the selection and breeding of new cultivars resistant to boxwood leafminer (Monarthropalpus flavus) and boxwood blight (Calonectria pseudonaviculata) are critical to the continued use of this landscape classic. Saunders Brothers Inc., located in central Virginia, has been conducting in-house research since 2008 on boxwood susceptibility to boxwood leafminer, and since 2015 on boxwood blight.

Saunders Genetics LLC, led by Bennett Saunders, was formed in 2018 to expand these trials as part of a breeding and introduction program. Saunders Genetics/NewGen Boxwood has worked to find selections with better resistance to these key boxwood issues. Keith Yoder Ph.D. led the effort to compile these results which are available to all via an openaccess, peer-reviewed research article appearing in the December 2022 issue of Journal of Environmental Horticulture (see citation at the end of article).

Summer feeding of boxwood leafminer larvae can seriously damage foliage

Circular lesions are a key symptom of boxwood blight

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Boxwood blight field trials use overhead sprinklers to create ideal conditions for infection

The Research The initial goal was to find cultivars to replace widely used but leafminer-susceptible Buxus ‘Green Velvet’, ‘Green Mountain’, and ‘Green Beauty’, along with highly blight-susceptible English boxwood (‘Suffruticosa’) and American boxwood (B. sempervirens). While some of the test plants were cultivars in the trade at the time; the intention was to evaluate unnamed seedlings and selections thought to be promising, from both Saunders and various other nurseries and breeders. In total, 146 selections have been trialed over the years for leafminer resistance and 75 selections more recently for susceptibility to boxwood blight. At the end of each season’s evaluations, many were discarded, some held for another year’s testing, or very few made it to the next level or otherwise cycled out of the trials to make room for new prospects.

NewGen Freedom® is a versatile workhorse in the landscape

Among the seven cultivars and selections identified in these trials as having both blight and leafminer resistance, six are available commercially: Buxus microphylla ‘Peergold’ PP6052 (Golden Dream); B. microphylla ‘Little Missy’ PP24703; B. sinica var. insularis ‘Wee Willie’ PP17007, and the Saunders Genetics introductions NewGen Independence® (B. microphylla ‘SB 108’ PP28888), NewGen Freedom® (B. sinica ‘SB 300’ PP32421) and NewGen Liberty Bell™ (B. sinica ‘RLH-BI’ PP24443). Again, these trials were never intended to be evaluations of all trade cultivars.

Work is ongoing as we evaluate additional boxwood solutions worthy of introduction by NewGen®.

For Optimal Performance, Pay Attention to Cultivar Needs The modern boxwood palette is comprised of several different species and hybrids thereof – all have pros and cons. To our knowledge, a perfect boxwood (or 100% resistance) doesn’t exist. So how to choose?

Decades of research and experience inform the indispensable Saunders Brothers Boxwood Guide (now in its 7th edition) with size and habit descriptions, site selection, and maintenance suggestions for 19 of the most popular cultivars. As with any other landscape ornamentals, confirm cultivar-specific mature size when spacing to ensure long-term satisfaction with the project. What will the garden look like in 10 to 20 years?

Pro tip: A light layer of mulch prevents water splash and lessens the potential for the spread of boxwood blight, as demonstrated with this planting of NewGen Independence®

temperature can damage any relatively new foliage.

Both plants make wonderful globe-shaped specimens, can be grouped and pruned into cloud plantings, or used as a moderate-sized hedge. Finally, no one cultivar is suitable for every region, situation, or amount of pest and disease pressure. But researchbased cultivar selection and proper care can help ensure healthier plants and success for your or your client’s landscape!

More information Keith S. Yoder, Robert A. Dunn, J. Bennett Saunders, Ted R. Mays, Michael D. Yanny, Chuanxue Hong, and Holly L. Scoggins. “Field Performance of Buxus Cultivars and Selections Against Boxwood Leafminer and Boxwood Blight”. Journal of Environmental Horticulture. December 1, 2022. 40 (4): 129–142.

For a border or other row-type application, clipped hedges are perpetually popular, but consider the “pearl necklace” approach as well – sufficient space allows for air movement, key to reducing the potential for boxwood blight. If utilizing boxwood for foundation planting, ensure sufficient spacing For more research and information on boxwood away from the structure and place well away from health, we recommend the Boxwood Blight Insight downspouts to maximize air circulation and minimize Group hosted by the Horticulture Research Institute the potential for a wet root zone. of AmericanHort.

Newgenboxwood.com has even more extensive For a listing of wholesale growers of NewGen planting and care information, including specific Boxwood plus boxwood care and maintenance advice tips on our own selections, produced by 30 network developed from decades of experience visit wholesale growers across the country. For example, www.newgenboxwood.com NewGen Freedom® – it’s vigorous! With a relatively fast growth rate, it will reach 4′ tall and 3.5′ wide Holly Scoggins Ph.D., Program Manager, and Bennett Saunders, General Manager, Saunders Genetics LLC in 15 years. Twice-per-year pruning and an extra bit of fertilizer will help keep it in shape; this care Originally published in Branching Out (Vol. 30:2) (May 2023) by Cornell University plus planting in a protected area can help prevent bronzing. NewGen Independence® has a more typical (slower) boxwood growth rate (3′ to 3.5′ tall and 3′ wide in 15 years), and classic boxwood beauty with high gloss foliage. But an extreme drop in The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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When is ‘food’ not a food?

by Chris Poole

We regularly talk about ‘feeding’ our plants, but what we’re actually doing is giving them nutrients.

These supplements can to a degree help encourage growth, which is why we perceive that ‘feeding’ them helps and why some Englishspeaking manufacturers label these nutrients as ‘food’. However, this is not what is actually happening, and in the long term, these nutrients could cause the plant to decline from exhaustion.

Plant nutrients are a bit like the vitamin pills we take. They supplement essential elements that might be lacking in a normal diet. However, vitamin pills don’t keep us alive on their own and this is exactly the same for nutrients in plants.

Both we and plants need a supply of energy that comes in a large part from carbohydrates in the form of glucose with, for us, more coming from fats and proteins as we have a higher need to store energy for later use.

Normally plants take most of the nutrients via their roots and then distribute them through their stems and branches. Their roots are not normally extensive enough to extract all the moisture and nutrients they need, so they have a symbiotic relationship with mycorrhizal fungi that significantly enlarges the area of absorption. This arrangement between plant and fungi is beneficial to both with the plant giving glucose in exchange for moisture and nutrients from the mycorrhiza (see above figure).

So, when we say we are going to ‘feed our plants’ we should really say we are going to give them some

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nutrients. It would really help educate us all if labeling of most ‘plant feeds’ was changed to ‘plant nutrients’, as it is in many non-English speaking countries.

How do plants produce energy if they don’t eat it like we do? . . . . . . they make it themselves by converting six carbon dioxide molecules (6CO2) + six water molecules (6H2O) into glucose and oxygen (C6H12O6 + 6O2) using energy from the sun via photosynthesis. The carbon dioxide is taken in through leaf pores with water absorbed through the roots and mycorrhizal fungi attached to them. The glucose that is produced is then used by the plants in a process called cellular respiration to release the energy for the plants’ cells to use as they multiply, causing the plants to grow.

Why is this important for boxwood?

Every time we clip or shear our plants, we remove leaves and branches that are made up of the cells necessary for life-giving photosynthesis and respiration. These leaves were created by the plants to produce more energy so they can maintain themselves and continue to grow. Removing them, therefore, has a negative impact on the plants’ growth.

Imagine a fuel tank with enough fuel in it to grow one leaf (see the figure above). As the leaf grows the fuel tank empties until there is no fuel left when the leaf has grown to full size. To fill up the fuel tank again, the leaf needs to produce fuel which it does from the sun over a two-year period (plus some whilst the leaf is in its growth stage). See the figure below.

This partly explains why the same variety of plant can have differing sized leaves depending on location, environment and how it has been treated. If the plant Growing each boxwood leaf takes roughly the amount is unable to produce enough energy due to lack of of energy that a leaf creates during its growth over sun or constant clipping, it will grow smaller leaves two years. Therefore, if we clip off the new leaves because the energy will run out before they reach full repeatedly, and there aren’t enough other leaves on size. These underdeveloped leaves then generate less the plant, then slowly the energy levels available for energy, so the plant is able to only grow even smaller growth will reduce and, in the end, run out. leaves in a self-defeating attempt to stay alive. In the end it will not have enough energy left and will expire.

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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What can we do to increase energy production?

The potential energy your boxwood can produce is directly related to the number of leaves available to photosynthesis and its root health.

One way of increasing the number of leaves is to leave the new growth unclipped. However, from a garden-design point of view this does not work for long as the plant would lose its shape and become too large. As a degree of clipping/shearing is therefore necessary, the best option is to make sure there is as much internal leaf growth as possible. This can be achieved through careful pruning and thinning as the plant grows, allowing increased light and air into the center of the plant to encourage internal leaf growth.

As these internal leaves will not get clipped off when the plant is shaped, they will provide an ongoing source of energy production during their life span of around three years.

Make sure the pH of the soil is between 6.8 to 7.5, the ideal range that will allow absorption of the nutrients in the soil. To test your soil, either purchase a test

New Boxwood Highlights A new selection from NewGen® Boxwood, Liberty Belle™, was chosen as one of the 15 winners for the Garden Center Groups Retailers’ Choice Awards at Farwest 2023.

The Farwest Show: National Nursery & Greenhouse Trade Show was held August 23-25, 2023. Retailers at the show were recruited to scour the convention center floor for the products they are interested in selling in their garden centers. They found Liberty Belle™ (Buxus sinica var. insularis ‘RLH-BI’ PP24443) to be particularly attractive with small, dark green leaves, a petite size, billowing habit, boxwood blight and leaf miner resistance, and ability to fill many functions in the garden.

Liberty Belle is the newest of the NewGen® Boxwood from Saunders Genetics, LLC. The NewGen® Boxwood website offers more details on Liberty Belle™ boxwood. Limited availability is expected in 2025.

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kit from a garden supplier that will give you a rough indication or send off soil samples for professional accurate testing. Depending on the results, the soil can then be amended to bring it to the correct pH level by using sulfur as an acidifier to lower the pH, or a form of lime to increase the pH. This process generally takes a couple of years if your soil is significantly outside the ideal range.

Encouraging good root health is also very important as it will allow the plant to take up the moisture it needs. This can be done by adding decomposed organic matter (compost) to improve soil structure and oxygen and moisture levels and encourage earthworms and other microbial activity. Mulching will also help retain moisture, keep the soil cooler in our warming climate, and prevent weeds that would otherwise use up valuable nutrients. It will also reduce potential box blight spores splashing back up into the plants.

Graphics by Abigail Dodd. First published in Topiarius, the flagship magazine of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society, www.ebts.org

The European Boxwood & Topiary Society EBTS is a ‘not for profit’ pan-European organisation that aims to encourage and enhance knowledge of boxwood & topiary through garden visits, publications, promotions, exhibitions and scientific research.

Our members comprise garden designers, historians, writers, scientists, great garden owners, nurserymen, as well as the many garden lovers who are the backbone of the Society.

Why not sign-up to our email newsletter to keep up to date with the latest news, or better still, become an EBTS member to receive our journal Topiarius which has boxwood and topiary articles and reviews covering history, science and art, plus our exclusive garden visits which you might like to attend if you are planning a visit to the UK or Continental Europe. info@ebts.org

www.ebts.org Another great year at EBTS UK

(Highlights from the European Boxwood and Topiary Society) In the spirit of promoting all things boxwood ABS wanted to share the latest news from EBTS UK with our members. Recent activities in Europe included: · Five day trips within the UK, visiting gardens where we engage with either the owner or the head gardener, sometimes both, in Dorset, Sussex, Kent and Oxfordshire/ Northamptonshire · Annual General Meeting weekend in the stunning Lake District. Amongst the gardens we visited was Arabella Lennox Boyd’s famed Gresgarth Manor. In 2024 our AGM weekend will be in Oxford · Expedition to Provence in southern France. In 2024 our foreign trip will be to Denmark · Five ‘Learn-to-Clip’ training courses held in different venues including Waltham Palace and Capel Manor colleges and one in Sweden. These courses are key to the aim of EBTS to educate gardeners in caring for their boxwood plants and to inspire them to create new and innovative topiaries

· Supporting research. EBTS UK is facilitating and advising numerous research projects (another important pillar of EBTS activity) into Box Tree Moth with, for example, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), a private woodland owner near Henley-on-Thames, a number of commercial outfits and through the USDA Eupressco project · TOPIARIUS, our beautiful and authoritative annual bilingual (English and French) magazine, has a new Editor, Elizabeth Hilliard, following its recent design make-over by former BBC Magazines art director Abigail Dodd · EBTS UK strongly represented in Le Touquet at EBTS France’s 20th anniversary celebrations, and the next issue of TOPIARIUS will accordingly focus on fabulous gardens in France EBTS UK is part of EBTS Europe. Besides the UK, other EBTS country groups are in France (the largest membership and includes gardens in Italy, Portugal and elsewhere which do not have their own EBTS branches), Belgium (home to our President, Comtesse Veronique Goblet d’Alviella), the Netherlands and Germany. We are in touch with colleagues and trends across the world including in the USA and Japan.

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2023 ABS Symposium Pottersville, New Jersey The American Boxwood Society gathered in Pottersville, NJ. on September 21, 2023, for a two-day symposium and tour in the “Garden State” of New Jersey. Home base was the lovely “Jardin de Buis”, the gardens of ABS board president, Andrea Filippone and Eric T. Fleisher. The symposium focused on the specialty gardens that are featured in the following pages. A huge thank you to our hosts and guides along the trip, we remain enlivened and inspired by your gardens!

Marty Carson’s Garden

As we approached Ms. Carson’s garden, consisting of 50 acres in the rolling hills of Newton, New Jersey, attendees were greeted by two golden retrievers, Kenswick and Zeke. Their docile hospitality was a perfect introduction into the nature of this private garden. Ms. Carson does not use any chemicals on the property and has adapted the wild nature of plants to allow for less manual labor. We continued on past ‘The Ruins’, through the front parterre boxwood entrance, down a herringbone path, and on to the arbor that supported a massive wisteria. Here, grasses and asters had reached their peak; the phlox and geranium had already passed. As we made our way to the greenhouse that anchors the vegetable and herb garden, I nibbled perhaps the best raspberries I’d ever had. Nicotiana, cleome, sage and zinnia were

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Andrea Filippone and Marty Carson

in full glory, mixed throughout the meandering paths of various materials. The center of the walled herb garden held a beautiful dovecote, with an arbor at the opposite end of the greenhouse, waiting for next year’s gourd, annual vine, string beans, or cucumber.

Making our way out of the herb garden, we strolled by the lake that is fed by the slightest, most eye pleasing, bridal veil waterfall. The lake was stunning in its simplicity, framed by stone and populated with magnificent old koi. As we reached the pool and pool house Ms. Carson created a diamond-shaped espaliered apple tree to act as a wall on one side of the pool. Reclaimed wrought iron gates are another feature in this part of the garden, as well in the herb garden and entrance arbor. The pool dripped in a tropical feel with numerous zinnia, hosta, hydrangea, potted yucca, and again, another arbor supporting an aged wisteria. As we circled back to the Ruin Garden, we saw that Ms. Carson had incorporated a water feature and stone steps, taking the visitor to a higher elevation, experiencing the garden in a panoramic view. Her decades-long diligence in nurturing her garden was delightful. It is no wonder that Ms. Carson’s garden is so frequently visited by garden enthusiasts throughout the year.

by Katie Mullen

Photo by Katie Mullen

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Luna Parc

Some gardens are known for their horticultural specimens, some are known for their views and layout. But Ricky Boscarino’s garden Luna Parc is something else! Here, the garden is about sculpture and the experience of moving from space to space, only to be delighted by another creation around the next bend. Found objects, such as bowling balls, vertical arrangements of broken tiles and crutches take on new life and new meanings when they are combined and used as focal points. The house itself is conceived as a mixture of sculptures, and in the words of one ABS member, it is “creativity metastasized”. Where else would you enter a building through an artichoke?

by Susan Shafer

Ricky Boscarino

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Ken Druse and Louis Bauer’s Garden

Photo by Louis Bauer

As you would expect from two serious professional gardeners, we were in awe of their garden starting at the front door. Louis is the recently retired Director of Horticulture at Wave Hill, the public garden in the Bronx, NY and Ken Druse is the author of 20 award-winning books on our favorite subject. While the house lies close to the road, multiple layers of unusual and familiar plants in unique combinations caused us to linger at the front door to take it all in.

But that just gave us a taste of what was to come.

We entered the home built on the foundation of a former 19th century mill store, filled with light and books. The ABS members filed through the kitchen past a delicious buffet lunch and then enjoyed lunchtime fellowship and conversation in a sunny room full of plants there and on the nearby porch.

It wasn’t long before the views out the windows beckoned us to more than two cultivated acres.

A central circle of grass lawn was surrounded by mature trees and mixed borders; the entire garden is bounded by a stone wall, which itself is surrounded by a fast-flowing stream. We found that the wall serves a purpose: it keeps the land in and the water out (in the best of times – between floods). The garden is on an island in the stream. Walking to the end of the island, we came to a point of land with the perfect seating area allowing glorious views downstream within a small grove of towering Metasequoia trees.

that proved to encompass a wide variety of species planted by these two dedicated horticulturalists.

Behind the house, we were met by a slightly more formal setting with potted plants, paths, garden ornaments and more unusual species (including a host of boxwood). Ken estimates that there are some thousand species and varieties.

Our group lingered as long as we could, soaking up the pleasant atmosphere of a truly unique garden before having to board the bus and be on our way. We took with us many great ideas that may just pop up in our own gardens!

by Louis Bauer and Cheryl Crowell

The naturally walkable design led us around a circuit The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Jardin de Buis

Driving to the Symposium I had high expectations that Jardin de Buis, the home of Andrea Filippone (architect, landscape designer and ABS president) and husband and board member Eric Fleisher (a soil scientist who we all know as “T”) would be a splendid property.

From the road no house was visible, only two very old barns, and to my dismay you had to drive between them to progress to the house! I squeezed nervously through into the pea gravel courtyard and into another time and place of jaw-dropping beauty.

Having recently been to Italy, I could not help but compare the main building to the antiquity of Europe and the formal gardens to those of ancient castles.

Wow, was this going to be a great Symposium!

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As with the gardens, the story of the property unfolded slowly. What started with 25 acres and a few old barns has been transformed into a grand estate that is both home and business. As you traverse from one outdoor room to another you gradually get a picture of the many layers of the lives of two busy people.

The centerpiece was the Orangery, bookended by glass greenhouses that were salvaged from Rutgers University. This U-shaped courtyard contained a dark blue pool framed by four perfectly-shaped cones of Leyland Cypress and hedges of ‘Little Missy’ boxwood. The landscaping and seating rivaled the most beautiful resort that I have ever seen in magazines. And did I mention the four English Setters that were the ultimate garden ornaments?

Between the Orangery and the house is the potager garden filled with formal beds of withered vegetables suggesting a summer of plenty. Behind the garden and accessed by the pea gravel road that goes in front of the Orangery, is the Tin Barn. Much of the soil work goes on here, it is where Andrea and “T” keep their workshop, science lab, and compost tea brewing facility.

The overall lesson of the property and the land was the importance of sustainability. The lawn and gardens are kept healthy with organic treatments.

The Barn, Orangery, greenhouses and pool are all heated with solar energy. Even all of our trash was

sorted into one of three recycling bins, so there is no need to dispose of garbage. We used real dishes, silverware and glassware for our banquet, all washed, ready to use again at a sustainable floral event to be held on the property the next day. While many of us recycle, few achieve the level of “reduce and reuse” that is the everyday life at Jardin de Buis.

Andrea and “T” introduced us to a most remarkable design vision that marries unique complexity with solid scientific principles. And there was ample boxwood, a perfect host location for the Symposium!

by Cheryl Crowell

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Mountsier Garden

Stunning… absolutely stunning.

Mountsier appears as a well-landscaped, modest home on a quiet street in Nutley, NJ. Owners Silas Mountsier and Graeme Hardie collaborated with their designer friend Richard Hartlage to create this garden of surprises. We had no idea the incredible landscape we were about to experience.

The brick patio immediately behind the residence contained beds edged with boxwood, a water feature with seating provided by large mushrooms carved from wood, a spacious lawn, mature trees (oh, the C. nootkatensis!), and sculptures everywhere. Hostas and flowering annuals softened the edges of the lawn.

Surrounding this area was a wall of brick – not solid, but with openings imitating doors and windows which beckoned us to venture further.

Photo by Pat Reilly

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And what awaited us was almost indescribable.

Centuries-old oak trees reached to the sky, tied to earth by hornbeams tightly manicured into tall rectangles.

A berm covered with Hakonechloa and other grasses bordered the sides of the large expanse of turfgrass, while shrubs and trees created layers of texture and color. Artwork was tucked in places that brought smiles and delight. A large wedge of clipped Buxus had us all wondering the number of shrubs that made up this living sculpture. A climb up to a lookout provided an expansive view of the gardens. Pathways led from one intimate garden room to another, all within view of the drama of the hornbeams and oaks. Inspiration was everywhere.

The Mountsier Garden is open to the public very rarely, as part of The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days program. We all felt so fortunate that we were able to experience this world-class garden as part of the annual symposium.

Birdhaven Farm

Birdhaven Farm in beautiful Pottersville, NJ offered a great variety of garden elements to explore.

Complete with a century-old heirloom fruit tree orchard including a group favorite, Malus ‘Pink Pearl’, encompassed by a mature stand of Buxus. The 200 year-old property offers everything a garden lover would want. In 2002, Spanish designer Fernando Caruncho was tasked to refine the 75 acre property from an assortment of “crazy disparate pieces” to a place of classical order. Also included in this beautiful property is the Monastery (potager) Garden within the old paddock stone walls, large swaths of boxwood used as groundcover surrounding the medieval inspired home patio, a large pond with a pond hut folly, and a grandchildren’s maze within the hayfields on the hillside.

Thank you to Janet Mavic and E. Wayne Nordberg for opening their home and garden to us and providing a wonderful barn space where we enjoyed a nice lunch as well as an informative lecture by Lynn Batdorf on all things boxwood. Janet’s raspberry dessert was a favorite amongst our group and was a great treat.

We all wished we had more time to enjoy this bucolic setting that likely inspired a previous resident, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, to create her series of children’s books – The Nancy Drew Mystery Stories.

by Jesse Armer and Dave Schurr

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Willowwood Arboretum

The 80 acres for “Willowwood Farm” were purchased in 1908 by the Tubbs brothers who had an avid interest in horticulture and began collecting. In 1939 after the brothers’ deaths, Benjamin Blackburn Ph.D., moved to live at Willowwood, working tirelessly to ensure it became a well-regarded public arboretum.

It was Dr. Blackburn who selected Buxus sempervirens ‘West Ridgeway’ in 1986.

Willowwood is noted for prized ornamental plant specimens, often having unique provenance. Perhaps the best example of this is their mature Metasequoia

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glyptostroboides, the famed dawn redwood. Thought to be extinct, it was re-discovered in south-central People’s Republic of China in 1941 by paleobotanist Shigeru Miki. In 1947, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University in Boston funded an expedition to the Shuishaba Valley to collect seed. The photo above shows the dawn redwood specimen at Willowwood, with Eddie Goode, former ABS president, standing at the base. It was grown from the very first collection of seed!

by Lynn R Batdorf

Symposium Lectures & Meetings

The ABS Board of Directors

Fred Gouker sharing research on Boxwood Blight

Lynn Batdorf presenting a lecture

Eric T. Fleisher mixing soils

2023 ABS Symposium attendees were treated to two formal lectures. In the first, Lynn Batdorf made a presentation on all things Buxus while we enjoyed lunch in the beautifully-decorated barn of Janet Mavec. Lynn’s presentation was loaded with knowledge and eye candy; it was somewhat akin to “drinking from a fire hose.” Lynn talked about the historic use of boxwood, and gently chided those who use “boxwoods” as the plural. (Just try to tame verb agreement in Autocorrect . . .) Lynn is currently updating his book Boxwood: An Illustrated Encyclopedia and reported about his travels across Europe, enhancing his presentation with his superb photographs. Updates on diseases and insect pests of boxwood were provided. One important takeaway impacts monitoring and treatment strategies for the Boxwood Mite, Eurytetranychus buxi. Mites are attracted to new buds, but severity should be observed in the two- or three-year old foliage.

a clayey soil, easily compacted, can be mixed with volumes of compost and sand to achieve a soil in which plants will thrive. The quality of the compost is critical as is quantifying the numbers of microbes in the creation of biological infusions to improve the soil. (Too many “compost teas” are not managed properly, so “T” differentiates.) Through images sent from his microscope to a monitor, we saw how “T” quantifies fungi, bacteria and protozoa to develop beneficial infusions specific to a site. It was most helpful to learn that one of the best sources of compost is often the free-for-the-taking piles that municipalities provide to residents.

In the second lecture, we saw soil amended to a dark, friable growing medium and observed images of soil microbes. Eric “T” Fleisher demonstrated how

The lectures were the perfect complement to the inspirational gardens we visited. Understanding more about boxwood selections and current challenges, and about the soil that brings out the best in Buxus, was immensely informational!

by Pat Reilly Symposium photos in all previous sections by Cheryl Crowell and Andrea Filippone (except where noted)

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Gardening and Some Implications for Boxwood

by Lynn R Batdorf

Gardeners instinctively place boxwood with historical plants, associating it with distinction and nobility. Throughout gardening history, as new landscape designs and plant introductions have influenced and changed gardens, many plants have come, reigned, and finally abdicated to others.

However, boxwood has survived and even thrived through centuries of ephemeral styles and tastes.

Yet, despite being cultivated for 6,000 years,

boxwood can pose a challenge for modern gardeners.

Boxwood grows very slowly and can successfully thrive for centuries. This is largely due to the very hard nature of its wood. While many consider White Oak (Quercus alba) to be one of the hardest woods, boxwood is nearly twice as hard. With such an admirable attribute, why do gardeners report so many concerns with growing this resilient shrub?

One 18th century specimen of B. sempervirens next to Pavilion X University of Virginia in Charlottesville

Perhaps the oldest boxwood, in any garden, is in the demesne at Birr Castle (Caisleán Bhiorra), County Offaly, Ireland. This partially-hedged B. sempervirens allée is believed to have been planted about 1700 This mature hedge of English boxwood (B. sempervirens ‘Suffruticosa’) was planted in 1820. It is now 8 feet tall and 10 feet wide

This younger allée of B. sempervirens, common boxwood, was planted in 1870

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The Great Garden, one of the most famous Baroque gardens of Europe, is planted with 12.5 miles of boxwood at Herrenhausen Gardens in Hanover, Germany

Planting boxwood, then constantly shearing it, as an edging or parterre, became very popular and has been used extensively in gardens throughout the world. A popular domestic example includes the J Paul Getty Museum. The Malibu, California site prominently featured over 1 mile of Japanese boxwood (Buxus microphylla var. japonica) hedge to help create a dramatic reproduction of the Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum (Photo credit: Bobak Ha’Eri)

Boxwood has long been cherished in English gardening.

Known as “box” in Great Britain, the RHS Garden Rosemoor in Great Torrington, displays a box-shaped container playfully shearing a “box” into the shape of, well, a box

Boxwood is often featured in a delightful variety of containers, displayed in endless and always inviting ways

Perhaps the most exciting and beautiful container display of boxwood is as a bonsai. This 51-year-old B. microphylla ‘Compacta’ was selected and first styled by the bonsai master, Yuji Yoshimura. This boxwood specimen is cared for by the highly trained staff at the National Bonsai & Penjing Museum, US National Arboretum in Washington, DC

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Boxwood is a low maintenance shrub. In the wild, it is quite content to grow for two or three hundred years with no care. By contrast, the garden landscape is confined and dynamic. The constant care to keep the garden “beautiful” has long term implications, particularly for boxwood. The enthusiastic gardener caring for boxwood enjoys the immediate results of shearing, planting, mulching and more. However, the full implications of this well-intended, but all too often mis-directed, care typically do not become obvious for decades. Perhaps the few essential details of boxwood care are not well-understood or are simply overlooked. Perhaps an astute gardener identifies the small, early, passive, critical cues but dismissed them as benign. Only decades later, when the signs and symptoms become undeniable, even correct and thoughtful care cannot rectify the problem. Now, the gardener is faced with a more puzzling question, “Why did my healthy boxwood suddenly die?”

The answer is partly found in the unusually dense basic specific gravity of the wood. Boxwood grows slowly. Boxwood changes slowly. Small easy to solve gardening concerns, often overlooked and left unattended for decades, become untenable.

More directly, the answer lies in early detection and identification of detrimental biotic and abiotic conditions on boxwood or in the garden. Proper care can add many decades of vigorous and healthy life to boxwood. An appreciation of horticulture, the art and science of cultivating plants in the garden, is essential. Like all scientific endeavors, horticulture is dynamic and constantly improving as it adds new information, compounds, and techniques. Widely accepted gardening technique used ten or thirty years ago many not be appropriate today. Indeed, some may be injurious, or toxic, to boxwood or the environment. With that in mind, let us examine a few general gardening myths and their implications for boxwood:

Myth#1 “Landscape fabric provides permanent weed control for ornamental landscapes.” Post-

and pre-emergence herbicides are bad for the environment. Non-chemical methods of weed control are good. Synthetic mulches (geotextiles) are better!

Gardeners know bare soil quickly results in rampant weed growth. They know that covering the soil,

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denying sunlight, virtually eliminates the germination of these enthusiastic interlopers. Organic and inorganic mulches, as well as synthetic mulches have been widely embraced to fulfill this role. All landscape fabrics are degraded by exposure to ultraviolet sunlight. In as little as one year, with direct sunlight exposure, the fabric begins to decompose. At first it appears discolored, then starts to crack; finally, it begins to disintegrate. Mulch placed on top greatly extends the life of the fabric.

However, mulch, or other organic matter, invites weed growth. While inorganic mulches (e.g., pebbles, rock, stone) protect the fabric, they require regular cleaning to avoid weed growth. Boxwood roots grow near and at the soil surface and can grow into the fabric. When the fabric is periodically removed and replaced, these superficial roots are damaged.

Landscape fabric is a high maintenance alternative to organic mulches (e.g., shredded hardwood mulch, pine bark mulch, pine needles). While successfully used in annual production of vegetables, its use is not recommended in boxwood gardens.

Myth#2 “A bleach solution is best for disinfecting pruning tools between each cut.” No gardener

wants to spread disease (Macrophoma, Volutella, Calonectria, Phytophthora) when using pruners, saws, or shears, when caring for their boxwood. Sterilizing these tools, by dipping them into 1½ cups of chlorine bleach diluted with 2 gallons of water is essential to preventing the spread of these diseases.

The material safety data sheet (MSDS) of chlorine bleach states, “Prolonged contact with metal may cause pitting or discoloration.” Therefore, its use to disinfect tools is not recommended. Microscopic pits in the tools can harbor fungi that are unaffected by a quick dip into a chlorine bleach. Any dirt or debris on these tools also protect the microbes from sterilization. Bleach is extremely phytotoxic, more than most other common disinfectants. Remnants of bleach on tools will damage boxwood.

It is important to clean tools before disinfecting them. A longer soak may be necessary for tools with pitted surfaces. Alcohol dips (ethanol or isopropyl) and household cleaners (Listerine, Lysol, Pine-Sol) are easily available, moderately safe, and effective.

Lysol is phenol-based and has proven to be the least corrosive to tools.

quickly rots away, which a good thing; however, if the plant is not sold quickly, the ball must be rewrapped to keep the soil together to present a handsome saleable plant, thus adding additional effort to maintain live roots.

When bringing a balled and burlapped boxwood home, remove all wire, twine and burlap from the root ball. Inspect the roots and prune out any defects. Dig the hole only as deep as the root system and at least twice as wide. Fill hole with original soil; do not add any type of soil amendment. Mulch.

Carefully water for two years as the boxwood becomes established. Do not be tempted to add expensive, ineffective, transplant supplements.

Yes, some of this is contrary to long-standing and accepted landscape practices. University research demonstrates that avoiding supplements leads to substantial increases in boxwood growth and survival.

Myth#4 “Corn gluten meal is an effective organic herbicide.” Patented by researchers at Iowa State

University in the 1990s, corn gluten meal (CGM) was documented to reduce seed germination of many plants, including weeds. A natural pre-emergent, CGM Myth#3 “To avoid collapsing balled and burlapped root inhibits root development of the radical partially by desiccating the soil and reducing water uptake. CGM balls, it must be left intact when planting.”

Conventional wisdom says when planting B&B plants, is widely recommended throughout the domestic just peel the burlap away from the trunk and leave the landscape and turfgrass industries. rest intact. If the rope and burlap are removed, this Nick Christians Ph.D., the principal researcher and will cause the root ball to collapse and the boxwood patent holder of CGM, reported in several scientific will die. Besides, the root ball contains beneficial papers, his cautious recommendation of CGM for microbes and important soil organisms. Both help weed control. These articles acknowledge: ease transplant shock; you don’t want to hurt them by · CGM does not control existing weeds taking the root ball apart. Finally, some retail nurseries · the high nitrogen (10%) in CGM benefits both will not guarantee their boxwood if the root ball is existing weeds and desirable plants disturbed. · inadequate weed removal prior to treatment can result in an increased weed problem This common practice is unfortunate. Lots of root defects are hidden by burlap. Roots can be cut The cost of CGM is very high compared to other or wounded from the digging operation. Roots in weed control methods. Additionally, many repeated container and B&B plants may be circled, girdled, or applications throughout the seasons are required for kinked. Inspection of the roots allows one to correct control. many of these defects, increasing the life span of the boxwood. Root pruning stimulates the development CGM is a non-selective pre-emergent which inhibits of existing roots and promotes the growth of the germination of both desirable plants and weeds. new roots, thus enhancing establishment of your Perhaps effective in the Midwest US, CGM is not boxwood. Many B&B boxwood are burlapped too as effective in other areas. Other environmentally high during field digging. Soil and burlap covering friendly weed control methods (e.g., sub-irrigation, the trunk above the root crown leads to disease and mulch, soil solarization) are cheaper and often more death of the boxwood. Most burlap is natural and effective than CGM. The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Myth#5 “Supplemental (artificial) landscape light at night improves plant health.” The urban and

suburban landscape are healthy green spaces that often include substantial night lighting, perhaps most prominently along streets and in public parks.

Additional light, by prolonging photosynthesis, aids nearby plants. Certainly, this is effective in greenhouses – why not include landscapes?

The leaves and buds of plants exposed to extended periods of light react as if in an endless summer continuing to grow, regardless of the season or weather. This is more apparent in fall, after a few hard frosts. Widely used in industrial lighting, highpressure sodium lamps have the greatest impact on delaying natural dormancy of plants. (The effects of high-intensity lights can be partially mitigated by installing deflectors on the lights.) The long-term effects of altered light periods on plants has not yet been studied; however, logically, the loss of nutrients due to such chronic stress, resulting in compromised growth or even death of branches or entire plants.

Boxwood in marginal site conditions (e.g., poor soil, winter wind exposure) are more likely to become susceptible to this additional stress.

Myth#6 “Adding gypsum to the garden will improve soil drainage and plant health.” Gypsum (calcium

sulfate) improves the soil by changing the structure of heavy clay soil, loosening compaction, and improve soil fertility. Some websites selling gypsum claim it will also improve drainage, decrease acidity and eliminate soil salts.

Several scientific studies have found gypsum does not change soil acidity, and it increases the leaching or deficiency of seven essential plant nutrients. It can also have negative effects on mycorrhizal inoculation of roots. The effects of gypsum are short-lived, often only a few months.

To reduce soil compaction and improve aeration, application of organic mulch is more economical and environmentally friendly. While gypsum can improve heavy clay soil structure and remove soil salts, most urban soil are not improved by adding gypsum. It has no effect on soil fertility, structure, or pH of any soil type.

Myth#7 “Newly planted trees should be firmly staked.”

Professionals stake nursery trees for stability so the homeowner should also do this. Some retail garden centers provide customers with both oral and written instructions on how customers ought to stake their new tree. The garden center usually have these materials ready for sale.

All too often tree staking is installed too high and too tightly and remains for too long. Because staked trees do not “blow in the wind,” they grow taller, but with decreased trunk caliper. Improperly staked trees have a smaller root system and the xylem (transporter of water and nutrients from the roots to the stems and leaves) develops unevenly. After the stakes are removed, the tree is often unable to remain upright and the trunk is more likely to break during high winds.

Part of a 3 ft tall B. sempervirens sheared hedge grown in front of an office building on Market Street in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. The ground level, high-intensity floodlight, with part of the light shining directly on the boxwood foliage and branches, is on all night every night

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All boxwood grown in a container as well as most correctly dug balled and burlapped boxwood do not need staking. If staked, the post should be attached loosely to allow the entire trunk to move so it develops correctly. Remove stakes after the roots become established – one growing season.

Myth#8 “Antitranspirants prevent drought stress, especially for newly planted boxwood.”

Antitranspirants are widely recommended to avoid drought conditions caused by wind or temperature extremes. Recently-planted boxwood have a smaller root system and are unable to pull the appropriate amount of moisture from the soil. Using antitranspirants until the boxwood roots become established retains life-giving water in the stems and leaves.

The stomata (tiny pores) on the underside of boxwood leaves, play an essential role in antitranspirants. Antitranspirants provide either physical (latex, wax or acrylic film) or physiological (chemicals that may close the stomata or inhibit growth) barriers to water loss. On boxwood, the stomata density ranges from 88 to 326 mm2, and their size (aperture) range from 500 to 1.052 um2.

That is a lot of pores. These pores have two vital functions: water movement through the plant and allowing gas exchange between the atmosphere and the plant, both essential for plant health. It is impossible to reduce or prevent water vapor movement without impairing vital gas exchange.

Boxwood has a very thick cuticle (the outermost layer on a leaf, the epidermis) which excels in retaining water within the leaf. This feature is believed to have developed from a “photosynthesistranspiration compromise”. Evolving for millions of years, the thick cuticle of temperate boxwood can tolerate extreme drought stress. Due to this thick, relatively rigid cuticle, boxwood leaves will not wilt when drought stressed. Because antitranspirants block the stomates, they interfere with the ability of boxwood to make food. Less food increases stress, which can be lethal to a boxwood already shocked from planting or other challenging site conditions.

There is, however, a possible benefit to using antitranspirants. Chuan Hong Ph.D., Virginia Tech Professor at Virginia Beach, VA, and other scientists have been investigating antitranspirants to mitigate Calonectria. The early results are very promising.

Myth#9 “Organic products are safer than those with chemicals.” Natural or organic products are both

superior to, and safer, than “chemicals”. “Chemical free” and “organic” ingredients are labeled for fertilizer, compost, pesticides and more. Chemical compounds are bad. Organic compounds are natural and safe.

This issue is perhaps the most confusing and controversial of all those concerning gardening with boxwood, but perhaps it is also the most important.

First, a few definitions: 1) Chemical – Everything on earth, natural or not, is composed of chemicals. Astute gardeners might recall the periodic table of elements taught in most high schools.

2) Organic – Any compound, natural or not, which contains carbon.

3) Pesticide – Any chemical or compound, natural or not, with the ability to kill a pest organism.

Boxwood in the landscape cannot distinguish between nitrate (a usable form of nitrogen) from compost or from a bag of conventional fertilizer. For the past forty years, the author has had only marginal success encouraging boxwood enthusiasts to first test the soil to determine if fertilizer is needed.

If so, at what rate and formulation are important questions. Even with testing, gardeners commonly apply fertilizer too frequently or too heavily, resulting in excess nutrients leaching away. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports homeowners use approximately 10 times more chemicals per acre than farmers. Well-intended gardeners are a major contributor to non-point source pollution.

Naturally-derived, organic products do have a low environmental persistence; however, nature is not benign. Microbes, boxwood, other plants and organisms produce toxins, mutagens, and carcinogens as defense strategies. It is misguided to believe products derived from biological sources are safe to humans or our ecosystem.

Be conservative when adding anything to the landscape. All organic products, natural or not, can cause environmental problems when applied in excessive amounts. Focus on the properties of the compounds (toxicity and environmental persistence) that you apply to boxwood.

References: Batdorf, Lynn. Draft. Boxwood Handbook: A Practical Guide to Knowing and Growing Boxwood. Fifth edition. Friends of the National Arboretum, Washington, DC. Chalker-Scott Ph.D., Linda. Extension Horticulturist and Associate Professor, Puyallup Research and Extension Center, Washington State University. Various articles.

Guo, Yonghong, et al. 2020. “Stomatal opening on boxwood leaves yield entry portals for leaf infection by Calonectria pseudonaviculata.” Journal of Plant Pathology 102:213–217.

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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Book Review - A Gardener’s Guide to Box

by Lynn R Batdorf

There are countless articles and many books, solely dedicated to understanding box.

The first box book was published in 1859; today, the field boasts about 135 titles. From this specialized, crowded library of box books, one might justifiably believe that “anything I need to know about box is already in a book.” However, Jenny Alban Davies’ new book, A Gardener’s Guide to Box, proves there is still more we can learn about our beloved box.

Jenny Alban Davies earned a certificate in Amenity Horticulture from City and Guilds of London, College of West Anglia, in 1986.

In 1995, she opened River Garden Nurseries (www. river-garden.co.uk) in Otford, specializing in box. Her box inventory can be found in the RHS Plant Finder.

For several years, Davies was a topiary instructor at RHS Hyde Hall. She has been an EBTS-UK member since its inaugural meeting at Dorney Court in 1996.

It is through this combination of formal education, extensive training, and decades of professional expertise that she can give English gardeners a valuable, accurate, comprehensive, insightful, and contemporary guide for box care.

The softcover book is 7½ inches wide by 95/8 inches tall with 114 pages and 8 chapters. Thoughtfully produced, the book is printed on paper thin enough to allow the reader to comfortably navigate its pages, yet thick enough to avoid bleeding. The sheen highlights both the text and images without overpowering either. The efficient, beautiful, and professional layout allows the reader to savor and enjoy every page. The font style and size of the text are easy to read without wasting space. The 150+ high-resolution, full color images and illustrations are exceptionally well composed, well chosen, and

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appropriately sized.

The balance between these two elements (text vs images) is always challenging for an author and publisher, yet here the two have perfectly achieved this delicate balance.

The real strength of Davies’ book is the writing.

The author has a lot to share without being verbose or leaving the reader confused. With an acute and intimate understanding, she discusses all the salient box topics English gardeners might need.

Subtitled “Designing, shaping and caring for Buxus,” the book holds plentiful details in these areas. Following a 10-page introduction are chapters on horticulture (4 pages); landscape design (44 pages); popular species and cultivars (22 pages); creating, maintaining and renovating topiary (18 pages); shearing (8 pages); pests (7 pages); diseases (5 pages); propagation (4 pages); and planting and transplanting (10 pages); with a nice touch of plant physiology and soil chemistry throughout. There is a useful threepage subject index at the back of the book. Davies presents this wealth of information with a clean, clear, and informed writing style. This allows the reader to easily understand important, sometimes complex or confusing, box concerns.

There are only a few essential horticultural principles to properly care for box. In the wild, box may grow for several hundred years with no care. By contrast, the garden is under human control. The enthusiastic gardener often subjects box to shearing, digging, watering, mulching, and more. Without a full understanding of why they perform these tasks, gardeners will likely be asking, “Why did my healthy box suddenly decline and die?” Carefully reading and faithfully applying the principles in Davies’ book will

help keep a gardener from ever asking this regretful question.

A Gardener’s Guide to Box is also a very timely book. Throughout much of the world, box blight (Calonectria) and the box tree moth (Cydalima) are infamously conspiring to destroy box in both small and large gardens as well as countless acres of box forests. Faced with this onslaught, enthusiasts and gardeners might wonder if this stalwart shrub, successfully cultivated for millennia, is still relevant.

Jenny Alban Davies gently reminds us of the many intangible and potent pleasures box bestows. She successfully persuades the reader: “Yes. Box can be, and ought to be, celebrated and properly cared for.”

It is a mystery that such a well-produced book, overflowing with valuable information on relevant box care, can be sold at such a modest price. Because

every box gardener ought to have this reference, it is likely this price was carefully chosen so all might afford it. It is available from www.Amazon.co.uk for £9.59 (Kindle) and £14.99 (paperback) as well as www.

Amazon.com for US$17.99 (Kindle) and US$34.95 (paperback). A print version is also available from www.bookdepository.com for US$18.83.

Lynn R Batdorf, since 1985, serves as the International Cultivar Registration Authority (ICRA) for Buxus, appointed by the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS). He earned an undergraduate degree in Ornamental Horticulture. For 36 years, he served as curator of the National Boxwood Collection at the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. He has authored three books and over seventy peer-reviewed articles on boxwood. Batdorf has been awarded Honorary Life Membership by the American Boxwood Society, the EBTS-UK, the Association Française pour l’Art Topiaire et le Buis, and the German Boxwood Society.

Attend the 2024 ABS Summer Symposium in Chicago, IL Hosted by Fred Spicer, Executive Vice President and Director of the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Details to come - boxwoodsociety.org

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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The Magic of Skyline Drive and an Unexpected Surprise…

by Kenneth “Lee” Hahn

Several years ago, my wife Millie and I were returning from a trip south. After a long day’s drive, we decided to leave the northbound interstate to spend the night at a lodge on Skyline Drive in the heart of the magnificent Shenandoah National Park. “It was a dark and stormy night”, you might say, as we made our way up the mountain. Picture the setting: foggy, heavy drizzle and approaching darkness. In this mysterious yet pristine setting, I spotted something in the distance that caught my eye. Could it be? How could I have ever missed seeing them during all of our prior trips to this magnificent area. A familiar form but somewhat wild . . . yet out of place considering the high elevation (3000+ feet) and remoteness of the environment.

noted that some Park properties may have originally been farmsteads acquired as potential future work camps. They referenced the WPA (Works Progress Administration-circa 1930s Depression era) origins of Skyline Drive development and work camps that were constructed for the workers. Some workers may have brought small boxwood plants to the remote sites to add some air of civility and pleasant memories of home to the camps

Over time, I was able to speak with several National Park Rangers that specialized in the area history. They

Robinson & Associates, Inc. in association with EDAW Inc., Shenandoah National Park Historic Resources Study Final Draft (May 1997), p. 31.

Eventually, I had an opportunity to learn more about the camp that was in the area and also where there were more boxwood . . . and that spoke to a historic legacy that our National Park Service now oversees with attentive stewardship. So, on your next trip, get off the interstate and take a “higher” adventure along Skyline Drive and experience the sacredness of the Well, it took us a number of months to return to Shenandoah National Park and keep an attentive eye search for what I thought I had seen. Speaking to several Park Rangers (and identifying myself as an ABS for what may be an unexpected surprise! member) we finally located the area that caught my Note: The following indicates yet another possible reason attention earlier. It was a number of mature boxwood for Lee’s unexpected surprise.

(7-8 feet tall) located in a forest clearing not too far “Perhaps the most eloquent landscape features reminiscent from Skyline Drive. They were in beautiful condition… of this period and of the people who lived on the land almost as if cared for by an arborist or attentive soul before the park was established, are the small cemeteries (estimated as at least 100) scattered throughout the park.54 who knew of their sentinel-like legacy. An emotive Although most of the cemeteries are not maintained, burial experience for us. The thoughts of the history and stones, and funerary plantings such as boxwood and the “why here” crossed our mind? periwinkle, often still remain.”

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54 Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, Appalachian Trail Guide to Shenandoah National Park, (PATC, Vienna: 1994), p. 51.

­­Remembering Ronald L. Williams We are sad to report that Ronald (Ron) Lee Williams, 76, of Fishers, Indiana passed away Tuesday, February 28, 2023. Ron was our First Vice President, although he will be missed for many other reasons.

Always thoughtful, he provided sage advice to the American Boxwood Society Board and we will miss his considered insight into the management of the organization.

To many who knew Ron, “Ron and Linda” was one word. Besides his family, Ron had many joys including gardening, travelling, and collecting. As we saw at the 2019 Symposium in Indiana, they created a magical garden at his home full of artifacts found on trips.

Ron and Linda loved sharing their garden on tours and entertaining friends. He loved the fact that his granddaughters thought it was created just for them, and he was delighted that all four granddaughters were involved in garden tours.

His love of gardens and gardening led Ron to serve as an officer in several organizations including the Indianapolis Hosta Society, the American Hosta Society, Indiana Orchid Society, and most recently the American Boxwood Society. One of his proudest

accomplishments was serving on the board of the Ambassador House and Heritage Gardens in Fishers, Indiana where he was instrumental in procuring a huge number of plants for the garden. He also helped to establish the Madelyn F. Elder orchid collection at Newfields, a 52-acre campus featuring art galleries, gardens and other attractions.

His love of travel was shared with many when he and his wife established Garden Travelers, a company that planned tours of European gardens. For over twenty-five years they coordinated tours of historical European gardens and private sites. Ron was a student of garden history and history in general and loved sharing his knowledge with friends and family, or anyone who would listen. Although he loved all travel, his favorite country was Italy. Several ABS members were fortunate to have had Ron and Linda lead us on the ABS trip to Italy last year. It was truly magical and so well planned that even novice travelers in the group felt comfortable and able to enjoy the trip to the fullest. Ron, we wish you well on your final trip.

by Cheryl Crowell

The Boxwood Bulletin, the Journal of the American Boxwood Society.

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ROOTED IN TRADITION . FOCUSED ON THE FUTURE RESEARCH . BREEDING . TRIALING . PERFORMANCE

THE BOXWOODREVOLUTION

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