Buxus ‘Green Velvet’
Overview
Uses: Low hedges, foundation plantings, edging, and formal gardens.
Benefits: One of the most popular hardy boxwoods, forming a full, rounded shrub about 3 feet tall and wide. Glossy green foliage keeps its color through winter better than many boxwoods.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5–8
Sun: Full Sun to Partial Shade
Life Cycle: Broadleaf Evergreen Shrub
Growth Habit: Rounded — full and dense.
Foliage Color: Glossy Green
Mature Height: 3 feet
Mature Width: 3 feet
Growth Rate: Slow
Summary
A soft, rounded evergreen that keeps a low hedge or foundation bed looking tidy and green all year.
Green Velvet is one of the most widely planted cold-tolerant boxwoods, and its shape is the reason. It forms a full, rounded mound about three feet tall and wide, crowded with small, glossy leaves that stay thick right down to the ground. That natural form needs very little correction, so it works as an informal globe just as easily as a clipped hedge.
It is a hybrid bred in Canada for colder winters, and it holds its rich green through the cold months better than many boxwoods. That keeps a foundation planting looking finished from late fall to early spring, when deciduous shrubs are bare.
At about three feet, it is a natural fit for edging walks and beds, a low hedge along a patio, or the front row of a foundation planting. Slow growth means it fills its space over a few seasons and then holds that size with a light trim.
Care
Green Velvet Boxwood Care
Plant in full sun to partial shade. In colder areas, a site out of the strongest winter wind helps the leaves keep their color.
Give it well-drained soil. Boxwood tolerates a range of soils, including slightly alkaline ground, but its shallow roots suffer where water stands after rain, so avoid low, soggy spots.
Water deeply once or twice a week through the first growing season. Once established, plants handle short dry spells but appreciate a deep watering in prolonged drought. Water thoroughly in late fall before the ground freezes, and keep a one-to-two-inch layer of mulch over the roots, held back slightly from the stems. Water at the base rather than overhead and leave space between plants for air to move, which helps keep foliage diseases away.
Feeding needs are light. One application of a slow release fertilizer in early spring is plenty.
Shear or shape in late spring or early summer after new growth has hardened off. Skip late-season shearing, since soft regrowth in fall can be damaged by early cold. For hedges, keep the bottom a little wider than the top so the lower branches get light.
Growing in Containers
Green Velvet makes a neat rounded accent in a pot or window box. Use a container with drainage holes and a quality potting mix. Container plants dry out faster than plants in the ground, so check moisture often in warm weather, and feed lightly each spring, since frequent watering washes nutrients out of the mix. Evergreens keep losing moisture in winter, so water on mild days when the mix is thawed. Roots in containers experience greater cold exposure than roots in the ground. Plants hardy in the ground may require winter protection when grown in containers in colder zones.
Size
What Size is the Green Velvet Boxwood for Sale Online?
Our Green Velvet Boxwood ships in a greenhouse-grade grow pot and is appropriately sized for its container at the time of shipment. As an evergreen, it keeps its leaves through the off-season. If you have specific sizing or planting questions, please contact us.
How Large Does Green Velvet Boxwood Grow?
Expect about 3 feet tall and 3 feet wide at maturity, in a full, rounded shape. Growth is slow, so it takes several years to reach full size. Space plants about 2 to 2½ feet apart for a continuous low hedge, or about 3 feet apart to keep individual globes.
Additional Information
How is Green Velvet different from Green Mountain boxwood?
Both come from the same Canadian breeding work for cold tolerance, but their shapes differ. Green Velvet grows into a rounded mound about as wide as it is tall, while Green Mountain grows upright into a natural cone. Choose Green Velvet for globes, low hedges, and edging, and Green Mountain for pyramids and narrow formal shapes.
Does Green Velvet hold its color in winter?
Better than many boxwoods. It usually stays green through winter, though plants in exposed, windy sites in the coldest part of the range can show some bronzing by late winter. New growth in spring covers it. Explore more Evergreen Plants.
Will it grow in shade?
It grows well in partial shade, such as a north- or east-facing foundation that gets a few hours of sun. In deep, all-day shade it grows more slowly and becomes more open, so a spot with at least some direct sun keeps it at its densest.
Is Green Velvet boxwood deer resistant?
Yes. Deer rarely browse boxwood, which makes it a dependable evergreen in yards where other foundation shrubs get eaten. No plant is entirely deer proof when food is scarce. See more Deer-Resistant Shrubs and Evergreens.
