Scientific name: Buxus sempervirens
Pronunciation: BUCK-sus sem-pur-VYE-renz
Common name(s): common boxwood, common box, American boxwood
Family: Buxaceae
Plant type: shrub

Long a tradition in colonial landscapes, boxwood is a fine textured plant familiar to most gardeners and non-gardeners alike. Eventually reaching 6- to 8-feet-tall (old specimens can be much taller), boxwood grows slowly into a billowing mound of soft foliage. Flowers are borne in the leaf axils and are barely noticeable to the eye, but they have a distinctive aroma that irritates some people.