Distinguishing Kingsville from other boxwood, am I being scammed?

[shimbrypaku]

Don’t get started on juniper pinching.

Yea I just messed this thread up.

Take care

 

[Perplexody]

I just recently bought a boxwood that was labeled kingsville. It looks exactly like the one you received and I am also pretty sure it's not kingsville

Hey everyone. Just picked up a couple more boxwood, supposedly kingsville. Problem is, the texture of the foliage is nothing like the ones I already have. They're young and healthy, but the leaves are very soft and inconsistent in size, and to me don't even seem to be the right shape.... Some leaves are elongated. The kingsville I have are of exceedingly uniform leaf size and have a borderline plastic appearance and feel to the leaves, they're not all soft and delicate. Are these kingsville, or am I getting scammed? The first photo is one of my kingsville, followed by 3 pics of the new ones. Thanks.

 

[Ali Bubba]

Kingsville will revert back to larger foliage. You have to keep the larger new growth stems at bay. I could easily see someone taking cuttings from the new growth and not knowing the difference.

@Ali Bubba if you removed the outer growth do the inner leaves look smaller?

No, it's completely different. They're not the same plant, and to be honest, I knew it right away... I just wanted to check to make sure I wasn't crazy lol, so I posted the pics here... But it's plain as day. They're a completely different leaf shape, size, feel, everything. I know what you mean with the reverting though, so I keep mine trimmed tight whenever they push out an abnormally large leaf

 

[Ali Bubba]

I just recently bought a boxwood that was labeled kingsville. It looks exactly like the one you received and I am also pretty sure it's not kingsville

They're hard to find right now. The usual places I get it from have not had them in stock for a long long time.

 

[Ali Bubba]

refund but you get the keep the tree? if so, wow nice seller

Yeah, he was super nice about it. Seller on Etsy

 

[Perplexody]

That's what I've heard, the place I go actually had 2 real kingsvilles with the correct foliage but a bit pricey for me at the size. And the boxwood that I got was sizable and very reasonable. Not sure what the exact variety of boxwood it is but it has rather small leaves anyway so I'm happy

They're hard to find right now. The usual places I get it from have not had them in stock for a long long time.

 

[CapeCodBonsai]

I saw an online nursery selling young boxwoods at an affordable price so I thought, “Why not”. They were sold as ‘kingsville’ and they came labeled as ‘kingsville’. Since I’ve never seen ‘kingsville’, I have no frame of reference to determine if I have ‘kingsville’ or a dwarf cultivar labeled as ‘kingsville’.

I guess in the end it only matters to me because, I would want to use the correct name and not perpetuate the mislabeling problem that exists in the nursery trade.

By the way, I have no reason to think these aren’t the real McCoy. If they are mislabeled, I wouldn’t immediately think malfeasance!

Just in case some of you out there have a trained eye, here are some photos. I’d welcome any feedback.

 

[River's Edge]

I do appreciate your request, but! The close up photo's actually make it more difficult to determine the cultivar. What clearly distinguishes Kingsville is the size of the leaves as well as conformation. The plant varies leaf size and color with care and maintenance as do most plants. Extra water and fertilizer can change the leaf size larger to the point where it appears very similar to other larger leaf cultivars.
I think a simpler method would be actually measure the mature leaves on the plant for average size and report that finding!
The label as you have suggested may or may not be accurate.
How about a picture of the entire plant with a clear view of a ruler beside the trunk. Some clear indication of scale.

 

[Ali Bubba]

I saw an online nursery selling young boxwoods at an affordable price so I thought, “Why not”. They were sold as ‘kingsville’ and they came labeled as ‘kingsville’. Since I’ve never seen ‘kingsville’, I have no frame of reference to determine if I have ‘kingsville’ or a dwarf cultivar labeled as ‘kingsville’.

I guess in the end it only matters to me because, I would want to use the correct name and not perpetuate the mislabeling problem that exists in the nursery trade.

By the way, I have no reason to think these aren’t the real McCoy. If they are mislabeled, I wouldn’t immediately think malfeasance!

Just in case some of you out there have a trained eye, here are some photos. I’d welcome any feedback.View attachment 549662View attachment 549663View attachment 549664View attachment 549665View attachment 549666

they look like it to me, but would need to see a little further away...

 

[CapeCodBonsai]

The close up photo's actually make it more difficult to determine the cultivar.

Thank you for the replies @River's Edge & @Ali Bubba

I guess me saying that they were “young boxwoods” was a pretty general statement that gave no indication of size . . . sorry ‘bout that. Part of me thought having my fingers in the photo would also be enough of a size indicator (at least for the leaves).

These are little more than whips with 1/4” diameter trunks.

 

[River's Edge]

Thank you for the replies @River's Edge & @Ali Bubba

I guess me saying that they were “young boxwoods” was a pretty general statement that gave no indication of size . . . sorry ‘bout that. Part of me thought having my fingers in the photo would also be enough of a size indicator (at least for the leaves).

These are little more than whips with 1/4” diameter trunks.
View attachment 549720
View attachment 549721View attachment 549722

Thanks for the extra information. I do not believe it is possible to identify on this basis! older material can more accurately reflect the leaf size in comparison to trunk size and age. Here is a photo of an older tree! Estimated at twenty five years with a trunk size of 1 inch. " Kingsville is a very small dwarf variety as you are aware! I measured the leaves on this tree. The mature leaves ( majority of the foliage) are 1/8 inch wide and 1/4 inch in length. New growth after fertilization to improve overall health and vigour this spring before flush is a bit larger. 3/16 wide and 3/8 in length some of the bigger leaves.
It is important to keep in mind that foliage can be managed with care routines to a certain extent and as a tree compacts and ages the leaf size naturally reduces with proper technique and care. That being said I believe the numbers quoted above should give you a reasonable range for comparison.
My tree is a Kingsville provided by a very reputable nursery for a PNBCA convention workshop here in the Pacific Northwest. Vancouver Wahington. " Hacking at the Hilton" (2007)

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

Kingsville leaves are often curled downward along the vein, and then up on the sides…and usually around 1/8-1/4” long.
This one is a Kingsville.