What To Plant In Front Of Boxwoods

What To Plant In Front Of Boxwoods. Boxwood’s small, glossy leaves have a dense growth habit. Landscapers and gardeners favor boxwood for its appearance in topiary plantings and formal hedges.

Because of its tendency to grow upright in nature, you will see it used as an accent or specimen at the end of a border or foundation planting.

Boxwood is also frequently used in conjunction with annuals, perennials that provide textural interest, or other shrubs with nice textures and shapes for bouquets and containers.

What To Plant In Front Of Boxwoodsplant in front of boxwoods

If you’re looking to add ground cover plants to your Boxwood hedge and are hoping to opt for additional layers of textural interest, try some other low-growing shrubs with light, bright green foliages like Thyme, Sage, or Rosemary.

The important thing when choosing these kinds of options is that the greenery and foliage colors should look clean and not too dark for contrast.

Foxglove

A simple plant for your boxwoods to compliment is foxgloves. This flowering plant is low-maintenance and does well in partial shade.

The tall spikes of these perennials will be impressive around the boxwoods you’ve cultivated in your yard. They’re a drought-tolerant plant, which will also keep weeds at bay.

These foxgloves will grow up to 5 feet tall and bloom long spikes of beautiful flowers each season. In addition to bringing foxglove and boxwood specimens, consider planting a bellflower or begonia. Both are alkaline-loving and will contrast with the evergreen boxwood quite beautifully.

Depending on the type of plant that you’ve bought and what size it is, find other plants that will complement it as well. For instance, a boxwood contrasts with your landscape and can enhance it. You can also plant either impatiens or columbines next to it for a more interesting effect.

Herbs

Boxwood has been used in American gardens since the mid-1600s according to North Carolina State University Extension and is, therefore, a historically appropriate choice to surround a colonial-style herb garden.

Low boxwood hedge shapes can divide various types or species of herbs from one another, creating a tapestry of green-on-green patterns that complement and play off each other.

The soft gray-green leaves of the sage, for instance, provide a complementary tonal contrast to the dark green glossy leaves of the boxwood hedges.

Roses

Boxwood hedges are a classical choice for formal rose gardens like those of Edzell Castle or that of Kevin Lee Jacobs who is a gardener himself.

The smooth green lines of the boxwood hedges provide a neutral backdrop to rich blooms and rich color.

Formal boxwood is said to be tedious on a smaller scale, but projects like this can easily be done by tracing the boundaries of planned garden beds with trimmed boxwood plants.

Then filling in these spaces with groups of six-inch-long stems which can be made stronger if inserted in well-prepared soil and kept watered regularly for about seven weeks.

Annual Bedding Plants

Boxwood can be used in the garden to accent your borders, or even grown in large planters. According to the Virginia Cooperative Extension, a low-growing boxwood framework can be planted in any design, from a classic knotwork pattern to a modern corporate logo.

The areas between these framework lines can then be painted with the brilliant blooms of annual bedding plants to create a full-color living picture.

Impatiens, alyssum, collards, and geraniums all spread to create swaths of color within their boxwood borders. In autumn, these flowering annuals can be replaced with mums or flowering kales and cabbages.

Perennial Gardens

The United States National Arboretum chose boxwood as the border plant around their perennial garden because of its contrasting colors and then planted daylilies, daffodils, and peonies to contrast with looking more like a riotous form of color.

Without the expanse of all the green colors in your garden with all the different Buxus species you have intertwined, you may look too busy or disorganized.

But planting a clean aristocratic line in between each row of tall boxwood hedges will create an ideal place to escape into while walking amongst a beautiful maze that was made by you.

Miscanthus And Chasmanthiums

There are some inexpensive flowering grasses that look nice with boxwood. These include Miscanthus and Chasmanthiums. Together they create a striking display. Plant begonias and impatiens among boxwoods as well. Instead of boxwoods, plant bells, or bellflowers.

As opposed to woody shrubs, such flowers can be used as border planters. Boxwoods make for good privacy barriers or natural fencing.

As a border between native flowers like bee balm, they attract butterflies and hummingbirds. The evergreen nature of the boxwoods protects wildlife.

Boxwoods add height to a small yard or simply enhance the view. Despite being striking, boxwoods are more subtle than other plants, making them easy to integrate into any kind of garden design.

Boxwood is incredibly versatile – but will thrive when planted in a sunny area where it will be protected from cold winter winds; in moist, well-drained soil.

What To Plant In Front Of Boxwoods

Related Guides