Boxwood design ideas?

[Mike123]

Newly acquired Boxwood. Collected in late Feb. of this year. What should be the front? It needs to fill in a lot. I'm leaning towards first pic. Just wanted some ideas. Things to concentrate on next year. Critique and criticism please!

 

[Poink88]

For best advise...post more pics. Take at least 8...taken at same elevation and from all sides and corners of your box.

You know I love this tree...so much good things going for it as it is.

Tell us your preference...traditional oak like majestic tree, damaged/weathered dramatic tree, etc.

 

[Mike123]

Good advise. I'll take more pics. Have a wedding to go to this afternoon. So today's out! Is it wrong to want to stay home rather then go? Food, spirits, dancing etc.! Hmm.... I wonder if I can sneak tree under my table!!!
I'm not to sure. I like traditional oak like! I think big" Park Tree".

 

[Poink88]

Attend the wedding.

I found that keeping everyone happy (esp the spouse) makes this hobby (and everything else) a lot easier (to spend money and time on). LOL

 

[Mike123]

Got it! Tomorrows another day.
I'll try to post more pics as soon as I can.

 

[Mike123]

Thinking in this direction...

View attachment 47758.


This spring will be a little over a year since collected. Haven't really done anything to it except some trimming to promote budding closer to trunk. Played around a little. Came up with this. What do you think?

 

[D'Angelo]

Newly acquired Boxwood. Collected in late Feb. of this year. What should be the front? It needs to fill in a lot. I'm leaning towards first pic. Just wanted some ideas. Things to concentrate on next year. Critique and criticism please!View attachment 36911

View attachment 36912

awesome material, I would choose pic 2 for the front. It invites you in while the first pic says ...stay away......but then again, pic one shows nice trunk movement. Need more pics!!

 

[Mike123]

Thanks! Did that virtual and if I went with that I'd have to remove some rather large branches..

 

[edprocoat]

I just seen this thread, first let me say thats a seriously beautiful Boxwood. The first picture looks like a majestic old tree, I would not want to lose any of those branches man, they took a long time to develop that way and it looks like an artist had a hand in the way they are placed. The most I would do with that tree is open up the top some more to see the individual branches more clear, giving it more of an older tree look, not that its lacking that now. Keep in mind that Boxwood are slow growing plants.

ed

 

[Poink88]

I say no to your virt. I am with Ed. Most that I will do is apply multiple guy wires and pull some of the branches down...spreading them at the same time. Light pruning & wiring may all you need after that. If you want to do something drastic...be very sure it is for the better and not just to change it.

I collected several nice boxwood but none is close to this. It is really a very nice material and I hope it doesn't get ruined.

Can't give you advise on front until you post more pics.

Good luck!

 

[Mike123]

View attachment 47772


Don't know why this pic. Didn't go through in last post.
Thanks for replies! Would you guys suggest leaving in training pot for another year? Just feed and grow out? This angle would be my front. Dont see any other possibilities. I'm trying to post more pics of it but its in my shed ( unheated) and to move it around is a real chore! It's heavy! Two people definitely!! I'll have to look around for a nice pot.

 

[JudyB]

Hi Mike,
Nice tree. Your last attachment didn't work for some reason.
My 2cents...
I like pic one in the thread as your front. I don't like the virt, looks like a manicured shrub instead of a majestic park tree. I would keep most but not all of the branching. Just remove enough that you can see the outlines of the inner branches that have good movement. I would try to move some of the branches out and down to achieve more spread, and allow the growth outward from there. Large open grown park trees are very wide spreading trees. You'll want to make sure that enough light gets into the inner canopy to keep the inner buds healthy.

 

[Mike123]

Judy,
I agree with everything you said, big park tree is what this needs to look like, I don't know what I was thinking with that virtual! Just trying to see what I could do. I have direction and hope I can achieve that. Do you think I should keep in same training box? When collected I basically washed old soil full of rather large stones and such, trimmed roots and put in the box shown with original soil and" Nappa". Just feed heavily and get those branches outwards and down. Wasn't sure if I wanted to get a little more shallow in planting yet?
Thanks again for your response!

 

[Poink88]

Once you are committed on a repot, replace all the soil and make it as shallow as you want. I've collected boxwood with almost no rootball left and still survived.

If you want to be "safe", come spring start by checking all the major radial roots. If they are long and need to be trimmed shorter later, dig near the future chop point (think of the final bonsai pot size and reduce further for the fine roots to spread)...then gouge on both sides of the root (take away 1/4 the diameter on both sides leaving half of the root intact). Then backfill with good soil. This should encourage new roots at those "damaged" areas like layering, making your future chop much safer.

Good luck!

 

[JudyB]

You can put this into something smaller, and boxwoods do deal with root pruning pretty easily. I don't think I'd go too shallow or small yet, I'd give it some room to grow. But from the sounds of your soil, (what is Nappa?) I think I'd repot, and you could do a smaller trainer instead of a box at this point if you want. From what I've found with boxwood, they can do pretty shallow final containers.
I think if you use the first pic in the post as your front, I'd showcase that wonderful curve of the front of the trunk that goes left then so gracefully back right. Fan the branches out from there, to complete that line...

 

[Mike123]

I like that curve also, that's what I saw before I collected it. It was a big round boxwood bush I'm sure that you wouldn't think to much of, and wouldnt be able to see the inner bones. but fortunately it was probably backed into numerous times at the Burger King where I collected it. that brings me to my next question. Do you or anyone have some prospects of your own? what I mean is you see something you want to get. I guess I'm a bit of an urban collector. I have few that I'm going to try and get, like at my local Duncan doughnuts, there are some ilex that are nice! and I would love to get these Yews at a day care that I pass every day! Oh and a yew on a major road in Philadelphia that I also pass almost every day. See the landscapers out there, just gotta get up to asking. Also i have gotten shot down a couple of times! They think your crazy for asking. But I think it never hurts to ask. If you don't ask you'll never know.

 

[Mike123]

Oh and the "Nappa" was Napa oil dri. It's been discussed in length before.

 

[michaelj]

This stuff.

http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/C...aceous-Earth-Absorbent/_/R-NFA8822_0178972712

 

[Mike123]

Looking at this boxwood I think the branch on the right should go. Too straight .What do you think? Used guy wires to lower branches. Needs to fill out in the back so I'm hoping it puts out a lot of new growth.

 

[Waldo Street Pottery]

It's a great tree. I think I'd be willing to try to put some movement in that branch before I removed it. Branch bender? Turnbuckle? Keep up the great work.