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Franklin’s Gem Boxwood – 6 Caring tips & Propagation Guide

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The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood is a very dense and small shrub plant that can be maintained easily. These plants originated from parts of Korea and China. Due to the plant’s compact size, they are perfect for growing in small gardens.

The green foliage of this shrub turns into a beautiful olive green color which is very dense. When planting indoors, the plant is excellent to put in pots. The plant is also known as Japanese Boxwood.

Franklin's Gem Boxwood 1
Franklin’s Gem Boxwood – via Etsy

Key characteristics of the Franklin’s Gem Boxwood

Growth & Size

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood has a height of 14.5 to 15.5 inches and a width of 24 inches. These plants have shown a slower growth rate as compared to other plants. When these plants mature, they can even survive for more than 25 years. The size of the plant is ideal for installing in home gardens.

Leaves of the plant

Franklin Gem Boxwood has small and round leaves which are deep green. The leaves change color in winters from green to olive green. The leaves have a smooth and shiny appearance which is very attractive.

The leaves should be provided with sufficient air circulation so that the water holding up on the leaves dries up. This is to avoid any damage that can occur to the leaves.

Diseases

When growing a Franklin’s Gem Boxwood, there is a chance that it might catch infections and diseases. The most common disease the plant gets is the browning of leaves due to winter. When the leaves are exposed to cold winter winds, the water in the roots dries up, which damages the leaves.

Franklin’s Gem Boxwood can also catch fungus, leading to discoloration followed by dropping leaves. This disease can damage the entire plant.

Franklins Gem Boxwood 2
Franklin’s Gem Boxwood – via Etsy

Caring instructions for Franklin’s Gem Boxwood

Watering

To grow a healthy plant, you have to understand the correct amount of water your plant needs. Franklin’s Gem Boxwood needs water in moderation. When overwatered, the plant can experience the problem of waterlogging. 

Watering should be done when the soil starts to lose its moisture. To check this, use your fingers and test the uppermost layer of the soil. If you don’t notice any moisture, it will be best to water your plant.

Soil

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood can adapt well to moist soil. However, if you want to improve your plant’s growth, you must provide the plant with a draining system. The reason for this is that the Boxwood plant cannot survive in waterlogged soil.  

If the plant is grown in waterlogged soil, the roots can be damaged completely. To enhance your soil’s drainage, you can mix soil with organic matter, and your soil will improve a lot. 

Temperature

The plant has shown survival in a wide range of temperatures. The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood, unlike other plants, has shown tolerance in cold temperatures. Not only this, but Boxwood can also survive in hot temperatures. For this reason, a lot of people like to grow this plant indoors.

Lighting

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood does not require direct exposure to sunlight. They need indirect sunlight, which is not of high intensity. Very bright sunlight will scorch the leaves and cause damage to the plant.

To be kept as a houseplant, you must grow in a place that receives partial shade.

Pruning

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood is considered to be a quite low- maintenance plant. However, it will require pruning from time to time. As the plant is bushy, pruning can help it look healthier and aid its growth.

Furthermore, pruning is also very important for your plant if you notice any signs of pests and diseases on the plant. Make sure you remove the dead stems and leaves from the plant to grow well.

Fertilizers

Franklin’s Gem Boxwood does not require the support of fertilizers for growth. However, they might require a small amount of fertilizer when grown indoors. They should be given a balanced amount of fertilizer a few times a month. Over-fertilization can be hazardous as it might kill the plant. 

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood – a guide to its propagation

Since we’ve discussed the caring tips of the plant above, we will now discuss the propagation methods required to grow Franklin’s Gem Boxwood indoors.

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood is propagated using the 2 methods, which are:

  • Propagation by branch cutting
  • Propagation by water

Propagation by Branch Cutting

Step-by-step:

  1. Find new shoots on your plant.
  2. Using a disinfected pruning, shear cut off the section of a new shoot. 
  3. Ensure each shoot comes away with its roots.
  4. Remove the leaves from the bottom of the shoot. 
  5. Put cinnamon on the wounds of the offshoot and the main plant.
  6. Add a teaspoon of rooting hormone in a bowl, and after that, dip the shoot cutting into the bowl. 
  7. After that, put a cover on your pot with a plastic bag for humidity.
  8. Then you can put the plants in a pot and water them.
  9. Make sure that the shoot is provided with the required environment so roots can produce quickly on your cutting

Water Propagation

Step-by-step:

  1. Cut a new cutting from the existing Franklin’s Gem Boxwood plant.
  2. Make sure that only a few leaves are present on the upper side of the plant.
  3. After that, place the stem cutting in the container with clean water. 
  4. The water should be changed weekly to protect the plant from any infectious attack.
  5. The container should not be kept in direct sunlight for the healthy growth of the plant.
  6. Now observe the growth of the plant regularly.
  7. Once the plant grows a certain height, it can be replanted into the soil.

Summary

The Franklin’s Gem Boxwood is green foliage that can make any garden beautiful but their presence. These shrubs are pretty easy to take care of since the plant can survive in a vast range of environmental conditions.

The propagation of a Franklin’s Gem Boxwood is pretty simple. They can be propagated by using two methods which are discussed above.