Boxwood Green Mountain Shrubs for Sale Online

To maintain a Green Mountain Boxwood hedge in its most natural shape, thinning is the most appropriate way to prune for an informal look. To thin, prune selected branches throughout the shrub to the main trunk, to a lateral branch or to a lateral bud. The older and diseased branches can be pruned to the ground. This method of pruning allows the center of the boxwood to receive light and air, improving the health of the shrub. Boxwoods have a tendency to become very dense, especially if it has been sheared over a long period of time. This not only can cause fungal diseases, but also causes the leaves to grow just on the edges of the shrub. The inside of the Green Mountain Boxwood bush then turns brown where leaves have died due to a lack of light. Thinning allows the leaves to grow along the entire branch, not just the tips, resulting in a fuller look. Thinning can be done any time of the year except about six weeks before the first frost. The best time to thin would be mid to late February before new growth starts. This takes advantage of the first flush of growth, which is the best growth of the year.

If a formal look is desired, prune with shearing or hedge clippers in a pyramidal shape with the narrowest part of the bush at the top, tapering to a wider base. This shape will allow adequate light to reach the lower part of the shrub so the foliage will remain full all the way to the ground.

When using boxwood as a topiary or bonsai, pruning may be done several times a year as needed, although late summer or fall would stimulate new growth that would be susceptible to winter injury. Do not hard prune any area where you want to achieve leaf growth, as they may not respond for a few years. Just leave stubs or stripped branches until buds have formed where you want them and have made several sets of leaves. Buds that are unwanted can be rubbed off.

Watering well and misting the wood frequently can help Green Mountain bud more quickly. Rejuvenation of older Green Mountain Boxwood: At times, very old and misshapen boxwoods are going to need rejuvenation. Renewal or rejuvenation pruning of shrubs usually involves severe pruning. However, Green Mountain Pyramidal Boxwoods often do not respond well to this. It may take several years for them to recover if they survive at all. If renewal pruning is to be tried, it should be done in late winter or early spring, over a period of several years. Some experts say you should remove a third of the large branches each year over three years. Another method is to prune over a two-year period. Branches would be cut on one side of the plant the first year, followed by the other half the second year. Follow any hard pruning and shaping of boxwoods with a dose of fertilizer and a light layer of mulch.