Companion perennial for low boxwoods

Discussion in 'Garden Design and Plant Suggestions' started by 14dmoney, Jun 29, 2009.

  1. 14dmoney

    14dmoney Member

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    Hi,

    We planted a row of small boxwoods to define the front of our sloping landscape. Unfortunately, they are quite uneven and not very attractive to the eye. I went for a walk today and I noticed a nice white flowering perennial that helped to break up the solid green colour of the boxwoods. Would a coreopsis like "Sweet Dreams" achieve the same effect? Or how about a clematis like "Mrs Robert Brydon?

    Any thoughts are appreciated!
     
  2. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

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    Rearrange the box into an informal drift and then the variation in shape is no longer a problem. If these are dwarf box various other dwarf plants would be compatible.
     
  3. 14dmoney

    14dmoney Member

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    Yes, they are the dwarf variety. Any specific suggestions of dwarf plants would be greatly appreciated!
     
  4. kaspian

    kaspian Active Member 10 Years

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    I think your instinct is really good here, and Ron's suggestion is definitely worth considering -- I've really prefer the look of boxwoods allowed to take on their natural shapes. They have a lot of character that way.

    Color contrast would be nice. For instance, a variegated or golden-leaved groundcover like a Vinca or Ajuga. More dramatic and interesting (and expensive) would be a grass like Hachonechloa macra. Lots of a small, golden-leaved hosta would cool -- and both of these last two would offer a pleasing contrast of foliage texture as well as color. If you'd prefer a spreading plant (for instance to control erosion on the slope), the short (12-to-18-inch) bamboo Pleioblastus viridistriatus, especially in its golden-leaved form 'Chrysophyllus,' is beautiful, bullet-proof, and unusual enough to attract comment.

    Lamb's ear (Stachys) is a low-grower with felty, silver-gray leaves -- then at blooming time it sends up dramatic spikes of small pink flowers. I think in this context it would be useful to break up the monotony of low horizontal lines, either with the occasional flower spike or maybe an ornamental grass like Molinia or Calamagrostis that forms a rather tidy clump of green and then sends up tall, graceful, diaphanous flowering stems.

    I'm sure there are better ideas out there. These are just some plants I'm familiar with.
     

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