Kingsville boxwood

[brentwood]

Picked this up at a show yesterday, know nothing about these.. is this a fairly young, small Kingsville, or is this relatively big, old looking? Seems so small, just wanted something different.. 6 inch pot for reference

Is that root a plus or minus? Got it cheaper than shown..
B

 

[just.wing.it]

Be prepared to have everyone say, "its not a real kingsville".
I like it, reminds me of my old one....RIP.

 

[brentwood]

He and I compared to a Morrisville, very different leaves , much beefier

 

[rockm]

Pretty much a Kingsville by the look of the leaves. Root is a minus. It's distracting. You can work to reduce it next spring. Wouldn't take all of it at once. Nibble away at it in subsequent repottings.

Not bad size for one. It's medium as far as age goes.--probably ten or a little more. Kingsville thicken very slowly.

Overwintering-here in my area (zone 7), mine do fine with only mulch up to the trunk an inch or so deep over the pot surface. I make sure there's an air pocket under the pot for the winter to insure drainage. They tend to bronze a little, or a lot, with cold weather. That greens up with spring.

 

[brentwood]

Pretty much a Kingsville by the look of the leaves. Root is a minus. It's distracting. You can work to reduce it next spring. Wouldn't take all of it at once. Nibble away at it in subsequent repottings.

Not bad size for one. It's medium as far as age goes.--probably ten or a little more. Kingsville thicken very slowly.

Overwintering-here in my area (zone 7), mine do fine with only mulch up to the trunk an inch or so deep over the pot surface. I make sure there's an air pocket under the pot for the winter to insure drainage. They tend to bronze a little, or a lot, with cold weather. That greens up with spring.

I agree about the root, walked away from it a couple times before buying - if it was perfect, what fun would that be? Appreciate the over wintering info, we are a mild 6b here in SW Ohio, probably do similar with chipmunk protection. They are my nemesis.

B

 

[brentwood]

I just wondered, what kind of soil do people use for boxwood, similar for the dwarf varieties? I bought a second one from evergreen, want to put into a medium pot come spring...

Thanks!
Brent

 

[Hack Yeah!]

Standard APL mix

 

[rockm]

Standard bonsai soil. Nothing special. FWIW, you can get Kingsvilles into very small and shallow containers.

 

[brentwood]

Standard bonsai soil. Nothing special. FWIW, you can get Kingsvilles into very small and shallow containers.

I'm looking at putting one into a smaller pot I bought on a whim, that's good to hear.

B

 

[River's Edge]

I just wondered, what kind of soil do people use for boxwood, similar for the dwarf varieties? I bought a second one from evergreen, want to put into a medium pot come spring...

Thanks!
Brent

I am using a little higher percentage of akadama and smaller particle size for Kingsville in development. Sifted and fines removed.
It breaks down to roughly 40% akadama, 20% black lava, 20% pumice, 20% granite grit. The older trees that have been designed and are in refinement are in 80% Akadama and 20% Kanuma. Once again smaller particle size.They have very fine roots and appreciate the akadama for moisture retention and root formation. The slightly lower PH seems to agree with them as well.
This what the leaf structure looks like on my Kingsville stock.

 

[brentwood]

I am using a little higher percentage of akadama and smaller particle size for Kingsville in development. Sifted and fines removed.
It breaks down to roughly 40% akadama, 20% black lava, 20% pumice, 20% granite grit. The older trees that have been designed and are in refinement are in 80% Akadama and 20% Kanuma. Once again smaller particle size.They have very fine roots and appreciate the akadama for moisture retention and root formation. The slightly lower PH seems to agree with them as well.
This what the leaf structure looks like on my Kingsville stock. View attachment 414999

That's a sweet little tree - like when they don't look like football helmets, need to work mine (probably going to need a magnifier to see into it) ..

B

 

[River's Edge]

That's a sweet little tree - like when they don't look like football helmets, need to work mine (probably going to need a magnifier to see into it) ..

B

Thanks, it had its beginnings at a PNBCA Convention workshop in Vancouver Washington ( 2007) . My son started the tree at the workshop and I continued to develop the tree after he passed in 2013. They respond well to pruning. One of the key steps I find is to keep the interior clean and thin out the foliage once or twice during the growing season. ( to let the birds fly through)
Wiring buxus is tricky and progress can be slow to prevent breakage. I often wrap the wire to cushion and help prevent scarring. Also make use of tie downs that can be tightened slowly over time. Most develop solely by clip and grow process. however they are such slow growers that it is a shame to waste branches if they can be repositioned even a small amount.
Here is a picture from the summer of 2015 when I began to change the design of the tree. If you look closely you can spot the wire on the main trunk. I estimate the tree to be approximately 25 years of age as of 2021.

 

[Carol 83]

My son started the tree at the workshop and I continued to develop the tree after he passed in 2013. They respond well to pruning.

What a lovely way to still collaborate with your son and carry on his memory and his vision for the tree.

 

[brentwood]

I've cleaned up the root, put in a nicer pot, trimmed, fertilized etc - kind of a sweet little tree now.. look forward to it in five years

B