Buxus 'Green Velvet'

Treat your garden to the beauty and easy care of 'Green Velvet'. This evergreen shrub combines the hardiness and compact growth habit of Korean boxwood with the deep green leaf color of English boxwood. The result is a healthy, durable plant that is easy to shape and keeps its deep green foliage throughout the harshest of winters.

The small, oval leaves lend themselves well to pruning, especially on a habit as dense as this boxwood's. You can shape 'Green Velvet' to desired size very easily, and it always looks full and fresh, never gangly or loose. Such a pleasure for formal plantings and small-space gardens, where it will be admired up close.

'Green Velvet' is quite versatile, too. Its very low, rounded habit lends itself to topiary, yet if you are seeking a less formal look, it is naturally symmetrical with no pruning needed. Use it as a low hedge, a foundation planting, or a ripple of evergreen color for the border.

'Green Velvet' was developed in Ontario, so it is quite used to severe winter weather. In late winter the foliage may display a bronze tinge, but fresh green leaves soon emerge in spring to erase all traces. And it will not drop its foliage, so your garden looks vibrant even as the snow falls.

Left to its own devices, 'Green Velvet' reaches 12 to 24 inches high and about 24 inches wide. It thrives in full to partial sun, growing at a rate of less than a foot per year, so it will reach maturity in a few seasons. This evergreen also tolerates a wide range of soils as long as they are not wet or salty. You may notice its small clusters of light green to cream flowers among the foliage in spring. Such a carefree pleasure.