Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Variegated Boxwood Beauty
Variegated Boxwood Beauty is a variegated natal plum, with glossy leaves edged and splashed in cream to yellow. Like other natal plums it opens fragrant, white, star-shaped flowers with a jasmine-like scent, and it keeps its leaves all year. It is grown for the lighter leaf color, which brightens an entry or a pot next to darker green shrubs.
Best for: pots and entry beds where cream-edged leaves brighten darker greens, and low borders with a little afternoon shade.
The cream to yellow edges on the glossy leaves brighten an entry or a patio pot, most of all next to dark green shrubs.
White, star-shaped flowers with a jasmine-like scent open through much of the year. Plant it where you pass by.
Natal plum grows best in sun and gets sparse in full shade. A little shade on the hottest summer afternoons helps prevent leaf scorch.
New leaves yellow and roots can rot when alkaline soil stays wet. Leaves are injured in the mid to upper 20s, so cover young plants on the coldest nights.
- Low hedge3 ft apart, center to center
- Edging along a walk or drive3 ft apart, center to center
Water deeply once or twice a week the first year. Once rooted, water deeply and regularly in summer, far less in winter, and let the upper soil dry between soaks.
Leaves yellow when alkaline soil stays wet, and poor drainage can rot the roots. Let the soil dry between waterings.
Leaves can be injured in the mid to upper 20s. Cover young plants with frost cloth on freezing nights.
A light trim after flowering keeps it neat. Wear gloves, since the stems carry spines and the milky sap can irritate skin.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What makes it different from Boxwood Beauty?
Its leaves are variegated, edged and splashed with cream to yellow, instead of solid dark green.
Are the flowers fragrant?
Yes. Natal plum flowers are white and star-shaped, with a jasmine-like scent.
Does it have thorns?
Natal plum carries forked spines on its stems. Wear gloves when you prune, since the milky sap can also irritate skin.
How often should I water it?
Water deeply once or twice a week the first year. Once rooted, water deeply and regularly in summer and far less in winter, letting the top of the soil dry between soaks.
How much sun does it need in Phoenix?
Sun is best, and it gets sparse in full shade. A little shade on the hottest summer afternoons helps prevent leaf scorch.
Why are the leaves turning red in winter?
Cold nights can turn natal plum leaves reddish purple. They green up again in spring on their own.
Is it frost hardy?
Leaves are injured in the mid to upper 20s, and the plant is rated to about 26°F. Cover young plants with frost cloth on the coldest nights.
Is the fruit edible?
Natal plum fruit is edible once fully ripe and red. Unripe fruit oozes a white latex, so wait for full color.
Variegated Boxwood Beauty for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Variegated Boxwood Beauty is a cream-variegated form of natal plum. This page covers its leaves, flowers, sun, water, frost and pruning in the Valley.
Sourced from trusted Arizona growers and delivered directly to your door, job site, or property. We deliver across the Valley and to nearby towns, and quote delivery anywhere else in Arizona.
What is Variegated Boxwood Beauty?
It is a variegated natal plum, with glossy leaves edged in cream to yellow.
Natal plum flowers
White, star-shaped flowers with a jasmine-like scent open through much of the year.
Watering natal plum in Phoenix
Deep water once or twice a week the first year, then deep summer water and far less in winter.
Sun and shade
Sun is best, with a little afternoon shade in the hottest months. It gets sparse in full shade.
Is natal plum frost hardy?
Leaves are injured in the mid to upper 20s, and the plant is rated to about 26°F.
Pruning natal plum
A light trim after flowering keeps it neat. Wear gloves for the spines and sap.
We deliver across the Valley, from Phoenix, Scottsdale and Mesa out to San Tan Valley, Maricopa and Casa Grande, and up to Prescott, Sedona, Payson and Globe. See delivery areas and rates.