Scientific Name:
Paxistima myrsinites
Pronunciation:
paks-ISS-tim-uh mur-sin-EYE-teez
Common Name:
Oregon boxwood, false box
Family Name:
Celastraceae
Plant Type:
Broadleaf evergreen
Key ID Features:
Evergreen shrub (20-)50-90(-120)cm tall, becoming prostrate, reddish-brown bark, branches 4-sided; leaves opposite, ovate to obovate-oblanceolate, most 2-3cm long x 0.8-1.2cm wide, thick, leathery, margin serrulate, petiole <1mm long; flowers flattened, petals dark red-brown, oval, each ~1mm long; capsules oblong, 4-7mm long x 2-4mm wide, usually one seed in each of its two valves; seed dark brown-black, shiny, and partly covered in a white aril.
Habit:
Horizontal, Spreading
Form:
Creeping / Mat-like
Texture:
Medium - fine
Mature Height:
0.7 - 1.3m
Mature Spread:
1.5 - 2.0m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
B.C. west of Cascades, U.S. - northwest, U.S. - southwest
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Medicinal plant, Perennial border, Rock garden, Wildlife food
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Opposite, Sessile
Texture/Venation:
Leathery
Surfaces:
Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green
Colour in Fall:
Dark-green
Shapes:
Elliptic, Oblanceolate, Oblong, Obovate, Ovate
Apices:
Acute, Obtuse, Rounded
Bases:
Cuneate
Margins:
Serrulate
Inflorescence Type:
Flowers clustered
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
4
Corolla Shape:
Cruciform
Ovary Position:
Inferior
Colour (petals):
Red, Brown
Flower Time at Peak:
Jun, Jul, Aug
Additional Info:
1-3 per leaf axil
Fruit Type:
Capsule
Fruit Colour:
Green, Brown
Fruiting Time:
Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
seed dark, shiny, and partly covered in a white aril
Bark Morphology:
Prominent lenticels, Lightly fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Brown
Propagation:
Seed, Cuttings, Layering
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant)
Course(s):
- HORT 2355
Location(s):
- (TFL) Turf Field Lab
- (TFLW) Turf Field Lab West
- (WLG) WoodLand Garden