Espírito Santo, Maria DalilaRicardo, Cândido PintoDiogo, Maria do Céu Mendes Baptista2009-07-082009-07-082008http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/1089Mestrado em Engenharia Agronómica - Instituto Superior de AgronomiaBuxus, better known as box or as boxwood is an evergreen shrub. It is one of the oldest ornamental plants, continuing, however, to be widely used in gardens and landscapes. Buxus is native to central Europe, Africa, eastern Asia, the Antilles and Central America. Romans, seems to be the first to clip box and other hedge plants into shapes like columns, pyramids, balls and animal shapes. This art was rediscovered in French baroque and Italian renaissance gardens. Boxwoods are adapted to a wide range of cultural conditions, but they preferred to be planted in well-drained soils. Good drainage is very important. Boxwoods perform best at a pH of 6,5 to 7,2. Some boxwoods diseases are internationally known as “Macrophoma leaf spot”, “Volutella leaf and Stem blight”, “Phytophthora root rot”. The worst insects are Boxwood leaf miners and Boxwood mites. The history of the Botanic Gardens of Ajuda illustrates well the changing attitudes of the Europeans to nature. Despite the fact that gardens lost their scientific collection during the Napoleonic invasions, it still has a magnificent collection and beautiful gardens that look out over the Tagus.porboxwoodshrubBotanic Gardens of AjudaJardim Botânico da AjudaBuxosebesmaster thesis