Buxus sempervirens
Common box

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Common box (Buxus sempervirens) is an evergreen shrub or small tree, typically 1–9 m tall, with dense foliage and small leathery leaves. It is shade tolerant, slow growing, and long lived, often forming understorey vegetation in mixed deciduous and evergreen forests. Its tolerance for pruning and shaping makes it one of the most recognizable ornamental plants in European gardens and hedges. 

Common box has a fragmented natural range in Europe. It is restricted to the Cantabrian region, eastern Iberian Peninsula, and north-eastern mountain systems, with only scarce presence in Portugal (Carvalho et al., 2016). 

Box has historically been valued for its extremely dense, fine-grained wood, traditionally used in carving, engraving, and musical instruments. Today, it is widely cultivated across Europe and other temperate regions. Its main use is as an ornamental plant due to its tolerance of shaping and evergreen nature. 

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Acknowledgements

This distribution map has been developed by the European Commission Joint Research Centre (partly based on the EUFORGEN map) and released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0)

Caudullo, Giovanni; Welk, Erik; San-Miguel-Ayanz, Jesús (2017). Chorological maps and data for the main European woody species. figshare. Collection. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.2918528

 

The following experts have contributed to the development of the EUFORGEN distribution maps:

Fazia Krouchi (Algeria), Hasmik Ghalachyan (Armenia), Thomas Geburek (Austria), Berthold Heinze (Austria), Rudi Litschauer (Austria), Rudolf Litschauer (Austria), Michael Mengl (Austria), Ferdinand Müller (Austria), Franz Starlinger (Austria), Valida Ali-zade (Azerbaijan), Vahid Djalal Hajiyev (Azerbaijan), Karen Cox (Belgium), Bart De Cuyper (Belgium), Olivier Desteucq (Belgium), Patrick Mertens (Belgium), Jos Van Slycken (Belgium), An Vanden Broeck (Belgium), Kristine Vander Mijnsbrugge (Belgium), Dalibor Ballian (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Alexander H. Alexandrov (Bulgaria), Alexander Delkov (Bulgaria), Ivanova Denitsa Pandeva (Bulgaria), Peter Zhelev Stoyanov (Bulgaria), Joso Gracan (Croatia), Marilena Idzojtic (Croatia), Mladen Ivankovic (Croatia), Željka Ivanović (Croatia), Davorin Kajba (Croatia), Hrvoje Marjanovic (Croatia), Sanja Peric (Croatia), Andreas Christou (Cyprus), Xenophon Hadjikyriacou (Cyprus), Václav Buriánek (Czech Republic), Jan Chládek (Czech Republic), Josef Frýdl (Czech Republic), Petr Novotný (Czech Republic), Martin Slovacek (Czech Republic), Zdenek Špišek (Czech Republic), Karel Vancura (Czech Republic), Ulrik Bräuner (Denmark), Bjerne Ditlevsen (Denmark), Jon Kehlet Hansen (Denmark), Jan Svejgaard Jensen (Denmark), Kalev Jðgiste (Estonia), Tiit Maaten (Estonia), Raul Pihu (Estonia), Ülo Tamm (Estonia), Arvo Tullus (Estonia), Aivo Vares (Estonia), Teijo Nikkanen (Finland), Sanna Paanukoski (Finland), Mari Rusanen (Finland), Pekka Vakkari (Finland), Leena Yrjänä (Finland), Daniel Cambon (France), Eric Collin (France), Alexis Ducousso (France), Bruno Fady (France), François Lefèvre (France), Brigitte Musch (France), Sylvie Oddou-Muratorio (France), Luc E. Pâques (France), Julien Saudubray (France), Marc Villar (France), Vlatko Andonovski (FYR Macedonia), Dragi Pop-Stojanov (FYR Macedonia), Merab Machavariani (Georgia), Irina Tvauri (Georgia), Alexander Urushadze (Georgia), Bernd Degen (Germany), Jochen Kleinschmit (Germany), Armin König (Germany), Armin König (Germany), Volker Schneck (Germany), Richard Stephan (Germany), H. H. Kausch-Blecken Von Schmeling (Germany), Georg von Wühlisch (Germany), Iris Wagner (Germany), Heino Wolf (Germany), Paraskevi Alizoti (Greece), Filippos Aravanopoulos (Greece), Andreas Drouzas (Greece), Despina Paitaridou (Greece), Aristotelis C. Papageorgiou (Greece), Kostas Thanos (Greece), Sándor Bordács (Hungary), Csaba Mátyás (Hungary), László Nagy (Hungary), Thröstur Eysteinsson (Iceland), Adalsteinn Sigurgeirsson (Iceland), Halldór Sverrisson (Iceland), John Fennessy (Ireland), Ellen O'Connor (Ireland), Fulvio Ducci (Italy), Silvia Fineschi (Italy), Bartolomeo Schirone (Italy), Marco Cosimo Simeone (Italy), Giovanni Giuseppe Vendramin (Italy), Lorenzo Vietto (Italy), Janis Birgelis (Latvia), Virgilijus Baliuckas (Lithuania), Kestutis Cesnavicius (Lithuania), Darius Danusevicius (Lithuania), Valmantas Kundrotas (Lithuania), Alfas Pliûra (Lithuania), Darius Raudonius (Lithuania), Robert du Fays (Luxembourg), Myriam Heuertz (Luxembourg), Claude Parini (Luxembourg), Fred Trossen (Luxembourg), Frank Wolter (Luxembourg), Joseph Buhagiar (Malta), Eman Calleja (Malta), Ion Palancean (Moldova), Dragos Postolache (Moldova), Gheorghe Postolache (Moldova), Hassan Sbay (Morocco), Tor Myking (Norway), Tore Skrøppa (Norway), Anna Gugala (Poland), Jan Kowalczyk (Poland), Czeslaw Koziol (Poland), Jan Matras (Poland), Zbigniew Sobierajski (Poland), Maria Helena Almeida (Portugal), Filipe Costa e Silva (Portugal), Luís Reis (Portugal), Maria Carolina Varela (Portugal), Ioan Blada (Romania), Alexandru-Lucian Curtu (Romania), Lucian Dinca (Romania), Georgeta Mihai (Romania), Mihai Olaru (Romania), Gheorghe Parnuta (Romania), Natalia Demidova (Russian Federation), Mikhail V. Pridnya (Russian Federation), Andrey Prokazin (Russian Federation), Srdjan Bojovic (Serbia) , Vasilije Isajev (Serbia), Saša Orlovic (Serbia), Rudolf Bruchánik (Slovakia), Roman Longauer (Slovakia), Ladislav Paule (Slovakia), Gregor Bozič (Slovenia), Robert Brus (Slovenia), Katarina Celič (Slovenia), Hojka Kraigher (Slovenia), Andrej Verlič (Slovenia), Marjana Westergren (Slovenia), Ricardo Alía (Spain), Josefa Fernández-López (Spain), Luis Gil Sanchez (Spain), Pablo Gonzalez Goicoechea (Spain), Santiago C. González-Martínez (Spain), Sonia Martin Albertos (Spain), Eduardo Notivol Paino (Spain), María Arantxa Prada (Spain), Alvaro Soto de Viana (Spain), Lennart Ackzell (Sweden), Jonas Bergquist (Sweden), Sanna Black-Samuelsson (Sweden), Jonas Cedergren (Sweden), Gösta Eriksson (Sweden), Markus Bolliger (Switzerland), Felix Gugerli (Switzerland), Rolf Holderegger (Switzerland), Peter Rotach (Switzerland), Marcus Ulber (Switzerland), Sven M.G. de Vries (The Netherlands), Khouja Mohamed Larbi (Tunisia), Murat Alan (Turkey), Gaye Kandemir (Turkey), Gursel Karagöz (Turkey), Zeki Kaya (Turkey), Hasan Özer (Turkey), Hacer Semerci (Turkey), Ferit Toplu (Turkey), Mykola M. Vedmid (Ukraine), Roman T. Volosyanchuk (Ukraine), Stuart A'Hara (United Kingdom), Joan Cottrell (United Kingdom), Colin Edwards (United Kingdom), Michael Frankis (United Kingdom), Jason Hubert (United Kingdom), Karen Russell (United Kingdom), C.J.A. Samuel (United Kingdom).
 

Genetic summary

Genetic diversity and variation 

Common box is genetically similar to Balearic box (Buxus balearica) implying shared ancestry or possible historical/ongoing gene exchange between taxa (Van Laere et al., 2011). Iberian populations of common box have very high genetic diversity (Carvalho et al., 2016). 

Genetic distribution and clustering 

Common box populations in Iberia show distinct genetic differences between eastern-Iberian populations and Portuguese and Cantabrian populations. These are the result of differences in the environment since the Oligocene, with more humid/temperate areas (Cantabrian/Portuguese) and drier/warmer areas (eastern Iberian) creating a separation of populations (Carvalho et al., 2016). This genetic geographic structuring is also supported by differences in leaf morphology between populations, showing local adaptation and genetic divergence (Carvalho et al., 2016). 

Gene flow 

Common box is monoecious and self-compatible, and is wind and insect pollinated; its seeds are distributed by animals that each its fruits (Carvalho et al., 2016). In Iberia, common box has limited long-distance gene flow, due to the environmental differences between populations. 

 

The bibliographic review was conducted by James Chaplin of the EUFORGEN Secretariat in August 2025.

Further relevant genetic traits 

Cultivation and human intervention 

Cultivation and human intervention have shaped the distribution and genetics of common box. Historic and ongoing cultivation has created many cultivars, most of which are diploid, although four triploid cultivars have been reported, indicating some genetic divergence or hybridization within cultivated material (Van Laere et al., 2011). Cultivation has expanded common box’s presence beyond its glacial-refugial strongholds and, together with long-term human activity, has contributed to the current distribution of the species in Europe (Di Domenico, Lucchese, and Magri, 2011). 

 

The bibliographic review was conducted by James Chaplin of the EUFORGEN Secretariat in August 2025.

Genetic conservation 

Threats 

Common box faces threats from climate change and ongoing habitat fragmentation that together threaten population persistence and local genetic integrity (Di Domenico, Lucchese, and Magri, 2011; Sarı, 2025). Movement of cultivated material and crossing with wild plants can cause introgression and alter local genetic structure (Van Laere et al., 2011), while the combined pressures of pests, pathogens, and climate change mean breeding and conservation strategies must now be improved beyond traditional techniques (Sarı, 2025). These combined pressures raise the risk of genetic erosion, loss of locally adapted genotypes, and altered population structure. 

Management 

Management should control plant movement and nursery material to limit introgression and employ targeted pest/disease control to reduce population losses (Di Domenico, Lucchese, and Magri, 2011; Van Laere et al., 2011; Sarı, 2025). Complementary actions include ex situ germplasm banking, breeding programmes designed to retain regional genetic and ploidy diversity, restoration with locally sourced seed/stock, and monitoring genetic status of wild and cultivated populations. Carvalho et al. (2026) recommend the legal recognition of common box as a threatened species and its consequent preservation, as well as suggested measures (Carvalho et al., 2016). 

 

The bibliographic review was conducted by James Chaplin of the EUFORGEN Secretariat in August 2025.

Further reading

Sarı, Ö., Çelikel, F.G., and Yaşar, H. 2022. Current status and the last locations of Turkey’s native Buxus species (Buxus sempervirens L. and Buxus balearica Lam.) under threats. Uluslararası Tarım ve Yaban Hayatı Bilimleri Dergisi, 8(2): 179–196. https://doi.org/10.24180/ijaws.1073061 

Varol, T., Canturk, U., Cetin, M., Ozel, H.B., Sevik, H., and Zeren Cetin, I. 2022. Identifying the suitable habitats for Anatolian boxwood (Buxus sempervirens L.) for the future regarding the climate change. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, 150(1): 637–647. 

References

Carvalho, M., Rocha, J., Carnide, V., Martins, S., Mus, M., Amich, F., Almeida, R., Machado, C., Goncalves, B., Bacelar, E., and Crespi, A. 2016. Biogeographic divergences in the Iberian flora. A morpho-anatomic, ISSR-based, and environmental study of Iberian Buxus sempervirens L. Turkish Journal of Botany, 40(1): 1–16. https://doi.org/10.3906/bot-1409-7 

Di Domenico, F., Lucchese, F., and Magri, D. 2011. Late glacial and Holocene history of Buxus sempervirens L. in Italy. Annali Di Botanica, 1: 45–58. https://doi.org/10.4462/annbotrm-9123 

Sarı, Ö., 2025. Boxwood (Buxus spp.) cultivation and breeding. In: J.M. Al-Khayri, S.M. Jain, and M.A. Wani, eds. Breeding of ornamental crops: Potted plants and shrubs, pp. 399–433. Cham, Switzerland, Springer Nature. 

Van Laere, K., Hermans, D., Leus, L., and Van Huylenbroeck, J. 2011. Genetic relationships in European and Asiatic Buxus species based on AFLP markers, genome sizes and chromosome numbers. Plant Systematics and Evolution, 293(1): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-011-0422-6 

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