Saturday, June 30, 2012

British Boxwoods


I love the way gardeners and landscapers in the UK use boxwoods in planter boxes. Often combined with geraniums and ivies and pansies, the boxwoods back up the flowering plants and give soft texture to the planter's composition. I thought I would try a green theme, so I avoided color.

Here's my first attempt at a boxwood planter. I used a Green Velvet boxwood, a small one from Lee's Landscaping in Bay Port. I added a variegated ivy with several long, twining stems which I wired together into a quasi wreath shape. In London we saw window boxes with graceful swags of ivy, so the wreath is my bow to the London designs.

The square planter box brings a hint of formality to the concept. I did two boxes like this and have them flanking the main stone pillars at the lakehouse. Cost wise, the plants are about the same as filling a box with geraniums and accent plants.

I also added a Soil Moist 7 x 7" pad (I call these things "plant diapers") as I potted so that watering could be done less frequently. So far, I'm quite pleased with the results.

Copyright 2012
Wanda Hayes Eichler

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