Box is one of the most popular garden trees and is used for many purposes: as a topiary in the garden or in a container, as part of a border planting, as a bed border or even as a hedge plant. If the plant is not cut back too much, it will bloom with inconspicuous yellow flowers. These can occur in large numbers and cover the entire plant.
When does a boxwood bloom and what animals does it attract?
A boxwood usually only blooms when it is at least ten years old and if it has only been pruned lightly. The flowering period is between March and May and attracts bees, bumblebees and butterflies.
Box is sought-after bee pasture
However, the flowering only occurs on older boxwoods that are at least ten years old and are only pruned a little. The flowering period is from March to May and depends heavily on the weather conditions. Abundant flowering in the previous year is often followed by little or no flower production in the following season. Nevertheless, a flowering box is a popular pasture for insects, as bees, bumblebees, butterflies and other buzzing garden inhabitants feast on the nectar.
Don't cut off the flowers
For this reason, you should never prune flowering boxwood, but instead enjoy the hungry visitors. Only after flowering do you grab the secateurs and remove the dead shoots - unless you want to let the developing capsule fruits ripen and harvest the seeds. These are suitable for growing new plants, although the method is quite complicated. Boxwood can be propagated very easily using cuttings - which are often produced during pruning.
Does flowering affect growth?
Occasionally there is a rumor floating around gardening forums that the flower has a negative impact on the growth of the plant. This claim is based on the fact that the plant in question stops growing during the flowering period. In fact, the book does not grow or only grows slightly during this time, but it quickly catches up. As a result, the flower has no negative influence on shoot growth.
What do yellow leaves mean during flowering?
However, if the plant has strikingly yellow leaves during flowering, there are often serious problems behind it. In many cases it suffers from a nutrient or water deficiency, as both nutrient and water requirements increase during flowering. But before you take countermeasures, it's best to first check the actual causes.
Tip
Yellow leaves on boxwood can have many causes. Sometimes the plant is attacked by the boxwood moth, a small butterfly whose caterpillars eat entire stands bare.
