When you need a boxwood option in your landscape , these evergreen plants are excellent solvent .
Marty Baldwin
box is an excellent evergreen plant shrub for many situations , but sometimes you need a different option . There are several respectable boxwood alternatives for when you want an evergreen plant plant but do n’t appreciate the appearing or even the smell of Turkish boxwood . mayhap there ’s an eruption ofboxwood blightin your region , or you do n’t have the rightgrowing conditions for box . Whatever the reason , you ’re count to find boxwood choice , these 11 shrubs will provide a trace of evergreen elegance wherever you need it .
Credit:Marty Baldwin
Arborvitae
Bob Stefko
Arborvitae(Thuja occidentalis)are commonly think of as narrow , tall evergreens poke up through the landscape painting orused as a privacy screen . However , many miscellany are much more compact , such as ' Woodwardii ' ( prove here ) that get to a 4- to 5 - fundament globe , and ‘ Tater Tot , ’ which form a rounded uniform ball 2–3 feet tall and 3–4 foot wide at maturity .
An excellent evergreen plant for nerveless mood , arborvitae can begrown as a hedging , a screen , or case-by-case specimen flora . Choose a variety that maturate at a size you need to keep off damaging the plants with unnecessary pruning .
Credit:Bob Stefko
Growing weather : Full sun to part shade andwell - drained , moist grime
Size:2–30 feet tall , 3–15 feet all-inclusive
Zones:3–8
Credit: Nancy Rotenberg
Azalea
Azaleas(Rhododendronspp . ) are one of the showiest evergreen boxwood alternative . They are grown mostly for their colorful flower show rather than the evergreen foliage . These shrubs bloom in outflow , and some , such as the Encore Azaleas , rebloom in fall . The flowers come in shades of pink , red , white , purple , orange , yellow , and once in a while , two - tone colors .
Some gardener fleece azalea into tight hedges or balls , like you might do with boxwood , but they look best when tolerate to maturate naturally . Ifyou want to prune azaleas , it ’s a good estimation not to remove more than one - third of the plant life at a time .
Growing Conditions : Full sun to full wraith , acidic , well - drain dirt , average wet
Credit:saraTM / Getty Images
Size:2–8 understructure tall , 2–10 feet wide
Zones:5–10
The leaf and flowers of azalea are toxic to humans , dog , computed tomography , and horseswhen ingested .
Credit: Denny Schrock
Chinese Holly
saraTM / Getty Images
Chinese holly(Ilex cornuta)issometimes call hornedhollybecause of the needle - sharp spot on the dark green leaves . This incredibly adaptable largeevergreen shrubtolerates both high temperature and drought well . These plant life can be maintained as beautiful shorn formal screens and hedging .
‘ Carissa ’ is a dwarf variety that matures at 4 feet tall and 6 feet wide , while ‘ Burfordii ’ grows 10–15 feet tall and across-the-board . ‘ Dwarf Burford ’ settles in the heart , grow 6–8 feet tall and wide .
Credit:Brie Williams
Growing Conditions : Full Dominicus to part shade , wry to average moisture , average soil
Size:3–15 ft improbable and wide
Zones:7–9 , possibly 6 if protected
Credit: Denny Schrock
The fruits of Taiwanese Charles Hardin Holley are toxic to humanswhen ingested . The pointy parting can be painful , so always wear gloves and safety gadget glasses when working around them .
Inkberry Holly
Inkberry holly(Ilex glabra)is native to the East Coast of the United States . Its small leaf resemble box , but this plant grows well in moist condition , unlike boxwood . The sinister fruits are small but attractive .
Some selections of evergreen winterberry can grow up to 8 animal foot tall . One concern with many onetime varieties is that the plants often spill the low parting . When they are grow close together , as much as the bottom half of the plant can be unembellished stem turn . New selections such as ‘ Gem Box ’ and ‘ Strongbox ’ do n’t have this job . These varieties also spring up to a more manageable height of only 2 - 3 foot tall .
Growing condition : Full sunto part nuance , modal to moist dirt . Best in acidic soil . deflect eminent pH ground
Credit:Denny Schrock
sizing : Varies . 2–8 feet tall , 3–10 foot broad
Zones:4–9
The berries of inkberry holly are toxic to humanswhen ingested .
Credit:Courtesy of Spring Meadow Nursery
Japanese Holly
Brie Williams
Nipponese holly ( Ilex crenata)is a dense evergreen shrub with tiny , rounded , obscure green leaves . At a glance , it may be confuse with a boxwood , although Nipponese holly is usually darker green . It is slow - produce and can bepruned intemperately once the new growth has hardened . It is usable in a broad potpourri of shapes and sizes , including narrow and just ( ‘ Sky Pencil ’ , shown here ) , round ( ‘ Helleri ’ and ‘ Hetzii ’ ) , and midget ( ‘ Hoogendorn ’ ) . It makes an splendid tardily - growing and dumb hedge .
grow condition : Full sun to part tad , average to acidic dirt
Credit:Denny Schrock
Size:2–10 feet magniloquent , 2–8 metrical unit full
Zones:5–7 ( Zone 8 with added security )
The fruit of Japanese holly are toxic to humanswhen take in .
Japanese Plum Yew
develop condition : Part to full subtlety , well - drained soil with average moisture
Size:1–10 feet tall , 1–10 understructure wide
Zones:6–9
Credit: Peter Krumhardt
The bark , leaves , and seeds of Nipponese plum tree yew are toxic to humanswhen ingest .
Northern Bayberry
Denny Schrock
northerly bayberry ( Myrica pensylvanica)is a mid - sized , semi - evergreen native shrub . It has beautiful grayish - dark fruits from late summer through wintertime . Thefruit is attractive to birdsand is covered in a fragrant waxy essence used to make bayberry - perfumed candles .
This works digest salt spray , full sun , drought , and crocked soils . It has a generally upright and open ontogeny use with light green leaves 1.5–4 inches long . It lose its leaves in cold northerly climates in winter , but it makes an excellent intimate covering plant in temperate areas . Use it in a aboriginal works garden , as an intimate screen , or as a slack hedge . It can be thinly shear to uphold a respectable coming into court .
Growing Conditions : Full sun to part refinement , wry to moist acidic land
Size:5 - 12 ft marvellous and wide
zone : 3 - 6 , maybe 7
Pyracomeles ‘Juke Box’
Courtesy of Spring Meadow Nursery
Pyracomeles ‘ Juke Box ’ is a late plant foundation that is a hybridization betweenPyracanthaandOsteomeles . It has shiny evergreen foliation and a compact mounded cast . It is more heat tolerant than box and will grow in Zone 6 , but cold weather might damage the foliage . This plant life is attractive when left to grow course , and it reply well to shearing and hedging . Prune and shear in outpouring before the new growth becomes woody .
Plant Name : xPyracomelessp . ‘ Juke Box ’
Growing condition : Full sun to part spectre , average soil and water supply
Size:3 metrical foot grandiloquent , 3 ft wide-eyed
Zones:7–9
Southern Wax Myrtle
southerly wax Vinca minor ( Myrica cerifera)is the evergreen plant southern first cousin of northern bayberry . It has attractive and redolent Olea europaea - immature leaves , fragrant blue fruit in winter , and beautiful gray barque . The new outgrowth is golden - yellow , contrast nicely with other darker evergreen plant trees and shrubs . It makes an attractive hedge or foundation plant . Left unsheared , it develops a billowing cloud - similar form .
‘ Don ’s Dwarf ’ is , as the name suggests , a dwarf choice that matures between 2–6 feet marvellous and wide of the mark .
acquire Conditions : Full sun to part shade , medium to wet soil
Size:2–20 pes tall , 2–10 feet wide
Zones:7–10
Yaupon Holly
Yaupon holly(Ilex vomitoria ) is a stout and live option for southern gardeners who struggle to spring up boxwood or Japanese holly due to the heat energy . It has small drab fleeceable leaves , dense increment , andresponds well to profound pruning . This tight - growing plant rise as much as 2–3 feet per twelvemonth that can rise quickly into a dumb hedging .
option usable on the market place include ‘ Pride of Houston ’ , a metier to tall female bush with a heavy fruit set , and ‘ Schillings Dwarf ’ , a dwarf selection that grow only 3–4 feet grandiloquent and wide .
Growing condition : Full sun to part ghost , teetotal to fuddled soil
Size:3–20 foot tall , 3–15 base extensive
The berries of yaupon holly are toxic to humans .
Yew
Yew(Taxusspp . ) is a popular eccentric of evergreen with coloured light-green needles and ruby berry . yew can produce very large , but they stomach heavy pruning and shearing , construct them anexcellent schematic hedgingor topiary plant . However , deer dear to eat yew so if you scramble with deer , you ’ll need totreat the plants with a deer repellantor consider another Turkish boxwood alternative .
Growing Conditions : Full Lord’s Day to full shade , well - drained soil , average moisture
Size:4–40 feet tall , 4–20 feet all-encompassing
Zones:4–8
All parts of yew plants are toxic to humans , dogs , cats , and horseswhen ingested .
Avoiding Invasive Shrubs
When researching any new plant for your garden , it ’s important to make a creditworthy determination . Some common bush , such as celestial bamboo ( Nandina domestica , shown above ) , barberry ( Berberisspp . ) , and Formosan privet ( Ligustrum sinense ) , are ordinarily sold as evergreen or semi - evergreen shrubs for the home landscape , so they may come out to be good box option . However , these plants can quicklyescape from gardens and spread aggressivelyin many part of the country .
TheUSDA National Invasive Species Information Centeris a great spot to check for plants you should deflect growing in your country . Do n’t rely only on retailer when making important decisions for your garden .
Azaleas and Rhododendrons . Poison Control
Azalea . ASPCA
Ilex cornuta . NC State Extension
Ilex glabra . NC State Extension
Ilex Crenata . NC State Extension
Cephalotaxus Harringtonia . Cephalotaxus harringtonia ( Japanese Plum - Yew , distribute Plum - Yew ) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox . access August 2 , 2024 . https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/cephalotaxus-harringtonia/.
Ilex vomitoria . NC State Extension
Poisonous and Non - Poisonous Plants . Poison Control
Yew . ASPCA
