Buxus sempervirens
| Buxus sempervirens | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 5 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Evergreen | |
| Height: | 16' |
| Width: | 16' |
| Speed: | Slow |
| Blooms: | Mid Spring-Late Spring |
| Native to: | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Buxus sempervirens (common name: box)
Propagation: Seed - stratification is not necessary but can lead to more regular germination[1]. The seed is best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe[2]. Sow stored seed as early in the year as possible in a cold frame. It usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 15°c but stored seed can take longer[2]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter, planting them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of short side shoots with a heel, September in a frame[3]. High percentage[4]. Rather slow to root[K].
Nodal cuttings in spring in a frame. Fairly easy[3].
Cultivation: Succeeds in almost any soil that is well-drained[5][3], preferring light shade and chalky soils[6][5][7][8]. Succeeds in dry shade[9]. Tolerates a pH range from 5.5 to 7.4[3].
A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to at least -23°c, though it prefers milder winters[10].
A very polymorphic species, it is a very ornamental but slow growing plant[5] and there are many named varieties developed for their ornamental value[11].
This species is notably resistant to honey fungus[12][3].
A good bee plant[13].
Plants are very tolerant of being trimmed, they can be cut right back to the base if required and will usually resprout freely[5][14].
The foliage is pungently scented, especially when wet[15].
Range: Europe, including Britain, south and east from France and Germany to N. Africa and Albania.
Habitat: Beechwood and scrub, usually on chalk and limestone[16].
Edibility: The leaves have been used in France as a substitute for hops (Humulus lupulus) in making beer[17]. They cannot be very wholesome, and would probably prove to be injurious[18].
Medicinal: Although it has been used medicinally in the past as a sedative and to treat syphilis, box is very rarely used in modern herbalism[19].
The leaves and the bark are alterative, antirheumatic, cathartic, cholagogue, diaphoretic, febrifuge, oxytocic and vermifuge[20][17][6][21][22]. The leaves have been used as a quinine substitute in the treatment of malaria[17]. The leaves are harvested in the spring, before the plant comes into flower, and they are dried for later use[10]. The bark can be harvested at any time of the year and is dried for use in decoctions[10]. Use this remedy with caution and preferably only under the supervision of a qualified practitioner. The plant has not been fully tested for its toxic side effects[17][21].
The wood is diaphoretic, in full dose it is narcotic and sedative, in overdose it is convulsant and emetico-cathartic[20]. A tincture of the wood has been used as a bitter tonic and antiperiodic, it has also had a reputation for curing leprosy[20]. A volatile oil distilled from the wood has been prescribed in cases of epilepsy[20].
An essential oil obtained from the plant is used in dentistry[17].
A homeopathic remedy is made from the plant[17]. It is extensively used in the treatment of rheumatism[17].
Usage: Box makes an excellent hedge from 45cm to 4.5 metres tall according to the variety grown[5][14]. It is quite slow growing but very tolerant of cutting and is often used in topiary, where the hedge is trimmed into different forms for ornamental effect[11].
The leaves and sawdust, boiled in lye, have been used to dye hair an auburn colour[20].
Wood - hard, close grained, heavy. Although the wood is rather small, it is highly valued on account of its hardness - it is twice as hard as oak (Quercus species)[20][19]. It is used for engraving, printing blocks, bowls, combs etc[20][17][5][23][24][25][22]. The root especially is much liked by turners and cabinet makers[17].
Pollinators: Bees, flies
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
In Leaf: Evergreen
Seed Ripens: Early Fall
Flower Type: Monoecious
Heavy Clay: Grows in heavy-clay soils.
Known Hazards: All parts of the plant are poisonous, especially the leaves and bark[3].
Links
References
- ↑ Dirr, Michael and Charles Heuser. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press, 1987.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Bird, R. Growing from Seed Volume 3. Thompson and Morgan, 1989.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Launert, Edmund. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn, 1981.
- ↑ Knight, F. P.. Plants for Shade. Royal Horticultural Society, 1980.
- ↑ Brown, George. Shade Plants for Garden and Woodland.
- ↑ Brickell, Christopher. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers. Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1990.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Thomas, Graham. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray, 1992.
- ↑ RHS. The Garden Volume 112. Royal Horticultural Society, 1987.
- ↑ International Bee Research Association. Garden Plants Valuable to Bees. International Bee Research Association, 1981.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Shepherd, F. W.. Hedges and Screens. Royal Horticultural Society, 1974.
- ↑ Genders, Roy. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale, 1994.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 17.8 Chiej, Roberto. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald, 1984.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Stuart, Malcolm. The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism. Orbis Publishing, 1979.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 20.4 20.5 20.6 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Lust, John. The Herb Book. Bantam Books, 1983.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Polunin, Oleg. Flowers of Europe. Oxford University Press, 1969.
- ↑ Sowerby, John. The Useful Plants of Great Britain. 1862.