hi Anita,

with my 250 different varieties of boxwood it wouldn't be so difficult to make a choice.
unfortunately i can't get these large plants to you.

Wim

Well, that was a cute answer but not too helpful. I have seen that there are many varieties of boxwood and hollies. Some seem like they stay too small for the job I want them to do. The hollies, likewise, either seem like they grow too large or too wide or just arent' hardy. Do you have any specific suggestions for my very specific question? :)

Anita - Japanese holly (Ilex crenata) is often used as a boxwood replacement as the leaves are almost boxwood-like. They can be kept at any reasonable height that you want.

Jenny, thank you!

How did you remove your boxwoods? I have 8 that need to go away!

Hi Jenny, I went to look at the Ilex that you recommended. I like them, and I think i'm going to try them in that spot. The woman at the nursery looked at me kinda funny when I said that the boxwood smelled weird. Did I imagine that they smelled like cats had urinated on them? Or maybe cats WERE urinating on them? I would think the woman at the nursery would know that.

Before I buy, should I ask for male shrubs only, or male and female? I hope this is not too stupid a question, but do the females have berries only in the fall? and if so, how do you tell male from female at this time of the year?
On these hollies do the berries tend to fall and make a mess? I have a walkway right there and I hate to ruin it with berries, although I also would love to provide food for the birds that live here over the winter. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

anita - I would say most of the japanese hollies in the trade are probably males and will have inconspicuous teeny tiny flowers. And even if you received some females in a bunch, the shrubs themselves are so often sheared or at least headed-back during a typical growing season to keep them neat that you would rarely even see them flower let alone have them produce and ripen berries unless you let them go completely au naturel! This is part of what makes them different and more useful for hedging than other holly cultivars, which are often grown for berries as well.

Oh and my mom has an old english boxwood and yes they do smell like urine! This was it a couple years ago:

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You can see the bare section that had died and was removed and since that time, more sections browned out, which is unfortunately an issue with them in addition to the "fragrance"! LOL She has a japanese holly around the same age near the door that she keeps sheared as a sortof "neutral" evergreen foundation shrub amongst all her azaleas.

What's the sun exposure in this area?

Ilex glabra compacta stays under 4' without any pruning, and is a little more ... interesting, imho, than Japanese holly. It sometimes becomes "leggy" but that's only an issue if you're looking for a ball-shaped shrub. These are very graceful, well-behaved, hardy natives, and prefer some shade.

hello, diggingthedirt, I would love to plant natives, but that is a little too small for what I need. I'm looking for something that I can keep around 6 feet tall. Is there an alternative that grows a little taller? I want something that can be kept tidy, but not too small. I'm going to plant one on either side of the steps. I estimate the porch railing to be about 6 feet from the ground, and I'd like the rail to show above the shrub, whatever I decide to buy. Thanks

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One of my sisters inherited some Ilex glabra (inkberry holly) that were planted against the north-facing front of her house and in that spot, they ended up with a rather sparse, lanky, and sprawly habit. When she first moved in, she had to prune quite a bit from them due to ice damage and they have gotten better over the past couple years. But I can see how alot of snow could splay them open if not placed in a good spot.

I'm not sure what cultivar she has but perhaps compacta is a bit tighter in form. Here's what they looked like last year (the shrubs right up against the house):

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