Bush - Box

Box is used as an ornamental bush, which is suitable for topiary. This is pruning a bush into a shape, possibly geometrical such as a ball, or more ambitiously, as an animal or bird. Several box hedge gown close together can be pruned into a neat border to a flower bed, or even as a maze.

I bought a single box plant once when it was just a small shoot. I had a vague idea of pruning it into a ball, if it survived. But when it grew bigger, the shape reminded me of a chicken (our neighbours of the time kept chickens in their garden). So as an experiment, I tried to prune it into that shape.

One reason why box is good for topiary is that while it isn't as strongly growing as privet (which grows so vigorously that it needs constant cutting, and so any shape would be quickly lost), box will grow well, even if you cut back into old wood. It is a rather strange medium to sculpture. Usually when making a shape of something, you have to cut too little rather than too much, as you can't stick stuff back again. But when topiary, you almost have to cut too much, as it will grow back! If you cut too little, then you might get a bump later. But I've found that I can correct most mistakes, or just places which were awkward. It's very forgiving. I'm not sure how often it needs pruning - more than once a year, and whever it looks as if it needs a haircut, but not too often.

There is a disease of box which can kill the box, or at least cause branches to die back. I don't know if my box got this. At one point one side did die off, and my chicken lost a wing, so to speak! But I cut the dead branches off, and it seems to have recovered fine. I can imagine that this disease would be very annoying if you had several box, if one died, or grew less strongly, and caused a gap in the hedge.

To tell the truth, I am astonished at my chicken! I thought that topiary would be very difficult to do. But it can't be, because I managed it! And it is fun to see the chicken in the garden, not only at height of summer, but also in the winter, outlined in frost.

However, box has its problems. In 2021, my box (and my neighbour's) were attacked by the box moth caterpillar, and there are NO leaves left!

Eventually the box died, and I had to get rid of it.

Box chicken!

Before pruning

After pruning

Box moth caterpillar attack

Bush after having been eaten by caterpillar

Box moth caterpillar

Box moth

Click on photos for large version.