Limey Lisa may be the wrong color--it's bright in the spring, but gets considerably more green as the season goes on. I have two other possibilities. Ophir, which is bright gold when it comes up, but quickly turns chartreuse, is a medium small size with an upright habit plant and beautiful long, very wavy leaves. Little Razor is chartreuse all season, has an interesting plant habit with rather upright leaves that are lance shaped, and it grows like a weed. It's a cross of Venusta and Sum & Substance, and got it's small size from Venusta and the chartreuse coloring from S&S. It is larger than Venusta, with a mature plant being about 8-9 inches tall. Little Razor also makes a good edger. Either of these varieties will take full sun. Gold Edger will turn a very pale gold color in full sun, but otherwise will do very well as long as it's kept well watered. It needs some shade to keep it's gold/chartreuse coloring.

"Unfortunately, in too many professions (including mine), there are a host of untrained, inexperienced people willing to work for very little, and they muddy the market and can make it very difficult for the seasoned pros to earn a decent living." People have to start somewhere, as in any field. Most people can't hire the best, so there is a large market for those who are less experienced. The real problem is the "host of untrained, inexperienced people" who charge us high, professional wages simply because they are in a certain field, so charge the going rate regardless of their skill or experience. That is not the job ladder where I come from. Around here, you will also find GC's (expensive!) that employ cheap untrained laborers. So you do not get what you pay for. Now, if you're talking about paying even more than what people already pay (outrageous), not many people make the kind of money they could afford them anyway. The average American family income is only about $50,000. The real problem is that the construction industry really needs to have educational requirements, certification and strict regulations in place to stop all the nonsense that goes on. It really chaps my hide to hear people say we don't, or are not willing to, pay enough. I've heard this plea for more money a number of times recently. And by the way, I know highly educated people who feel the same way about this and wonder why some of these clowns are making more than them.

Don't get confused by folks tossing around terminology that may or may not be relevant. The term 'conifer' only describes a type of cone bearing plant - not its manner of growth. Conifers can be trees, shrubs or even groundcovers. Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) are an obvious if commonplace choice. Selections like 'DeGroots Spire' or 'Smaragd' will maintain a very narrow profile, although in time could exceed your height limitations. They can be pruned/sheared to form more of a hedge-like appearance or halt vertical growth if that is your wish. Unfortunately, virtually all columnar broadleaf evergreen choices are going to have a similar leaf appearance and texture as the boxwoods - many ARE boxwoods - so won't be much of a contrast. Although not evergreen, one columnar growing shrub I am liking and using more frequently is Rhamnus frangula Fine Line ('Ron Williams'). It does not set viable seed so not the invasive issue with other types of buckthorn and it has attractive, willowy, lacy foliage.

Thank you all. I will poke around online for Beanpole, and if anyone knows a good online source, please let me know. Also, do these tend to show up at the big box stores/garden centers in spring? Please let me know if you have seen them, in which case I might wait until spring. Right now, my list will include Beanpole, Emerald Arborvitae, and Sky Rocket Juniper. Please let me know if anyone has any other ideas, especially something dark green!