Lining the garden with boxwood

17 years ago

The potager looks so bare during the winter. Yes, there is an entrance arch and a simple fence (not white and cottagey, sigh.) The herbs sort of fade into the background during the winter.

I'm thinking of lining the edges of the area with boxwood for definition and evergreen color. Any other suggestions? Would the roots of a shrub suck too many nutrients out of the soil?

Thanks!

Happy

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Comments (3)

mountainsong
17 years ago
Happy, I don't know why, but people really stopped posting on here. :0( I am answering partly just to try to get things going again, as potagers are one of my main interests right now. I have thought of outlining my potager with boxwood, as that smell reminds me of my childhood, and I thought it would give the area some structure (grew up in NY state, but taken to lots of VA plantations/historic sites). I'm not sure if boxwood will grow up here though, and with our climate, you don't want to create any extra shade for the heat and sun-lovers. Callaway Gardens in GA has a large vegetable garden (and dozens of others); if you Google it, you may see some photos that help you out a bit, and their climate is much closer to yours than mine.

Mountainsong
kristinlokin
17 years ago
I have four 8'x 8' raised beds and I put a little oval-ish shaped boxwood in the outer corners just to have something sticking up during the winter. It's the first year for them, so I can't speak to how this will go long term, but they seem happy and the veggies nearby didn't seem starved for nutrients this growing season. I think I heard if you get cultivars with "green" in the name they are cold-hardier. (Buxus "Green Mountain" and "Green Velvet" claim 4b. Having said that, do you think I can remember the name of the type I got? :-)
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pineridgepotager
17 years ago
Hi, Happy.
I edged the outside of my potager garden with boxwood. Being in zone 5b, on the MO/AR border, I used 'Green Mountain' purchased at our local WalMart. This is a hardy boxwood. This will be the 3rd winter for the first 20 planted, with no losses nor damage. I plant mostly herbs in the outside 4ft ring, bordered on one side by the boxwood (now about 18' high), and found no problem with nutrients or water competition from the boxwood. This gives the garden definition you are looking for. Dianthus edges the inside of the outside 4 ft ring, a lower 6' winter evergreen plant and nice look. Other edging plants are Lavender Munstead, Garlic Chives, Chives, and Strawberries. See my Blog for the entire garden design. www.sharingthyme.blogspot.com

Here is a link that might be useful: www.sharingthyme.blogspot.com