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Box. Shall I let it grow?

B3B3 Posts: 24,484
in Plants
I had a short box hedge which got blight . I cut it down to stumps but didn't remove them as they were too awkward to get at.
After a couple of years, some of the stumps have sprouted leaves.
Would the disease be present in the stumps or is it worth letting them grow?
In London. Keen but lazy.
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Posts

  • Hostafan1Hostafan1 Posts: 33,749
    for the sake of easiness, I'd let them grow .
    Devon.
  • B3B3 Posts: 24,484
    Being lazy, I would only have rubbed off the buds😉 @Hostafan1.  I'll give them a chance.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • LG_LG_ Posts: 4,063
    The caterpillars arrived here in force last year, so blight might not be your main problem.
    'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.'
    - Cicero
  • B3B3 Posts: 24,484
    I was pretty much responsible for it. There's an acer overhanging it. Not a problem, plenty of light and air circulation. but  I 'd left the fallen leaves lying on the hedge for several weeks which provided a nice humid atmosphere in a warm wet autumn for the blight to grow. Mea culpa .
    I'll give them a go. I'm not going to plant anything else there anyway- just let happy stuff spread.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,313
    LG_ said:
    The caterpillars arrived here in force last year, so blight might not be your main problem.
    Yep...I got rid of most of my box plants this year. Life is too short to be dealing with those blighters. 
    To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
  • AstroAstro Posts: 387
    Is the general consensus that buxus isn't worth using at present owing to blight and caterpillar? I ask because I want a ball shaped shrub and buxus is easy to acquire and low cost. I was thinking of going for Ilex crenata though haven't seen any in the nurseries I've been in recently.
  • GreenbirdGreenbird Posts: 237
    Also interested as above. I wanted box balls on my front garden.
  • LG_LG_ Posts: 4,063
    I've got some small box plants which are OK. I will keep them until they're not OK, but personally I wouldn't buy box new now. Blight has certainly taken its toll over the past few years, but the box caterpillar reached my bit of London last year and I have literally not seen a plant in anyone's front gardens not affected. In the box alternatives test garden at Wisley they actually say that Ilex crenata is not their top suggestion.  
    https://www.rhs.org.uk/my-account/articles/alternatives-to-box
    'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.'
    - Cicero
  • B3B3 Posts: 24,484
    I agree. I wouldn't consider buying them, but as some of  mine have survived brutal pruning, I'll keep them until they show signs of disease again.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • AstroAstro Posts: 387
    Thanks @LG_ and @B3, I'll leave the buxus alone , at least until a solution is found. It's interesting that the rhs doesn't list Ilex crenata as other sources deem it a good alternative .

    I have looked at Pittosporum but the ones I've seen don't look so compact,  the leaves are relatively big too. Added the suggestion is it's not as hardy.

     I had looked at the yew online and thought it a nice looking plant ,i though it being poisonous compared with other topiary plants lent me away somewhat. I don't avoid poisonous plants, though may if there is an alternative that isn't.
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