That looks like boxwood blight and is incurable. Rip them out and destroy. And be very careful about replacing with more box as you will want to pick what are so far considered to be resistant varieties.

Boxwood Blight fact sheet

just my opinion..I had 113 boxwoods (I took a clipboard and counted)..mine had issues too..I took samples to the extension office..there were conditions that could be treated but I don't like insecticides/pesticides..I think it would've been an ongoing problem..it was sad but I started removing them..

any boxwoods that I've seen elsewhere are declining too..including new ones at a garden center..

I'd rather have a different plant that doesn't look sickly rather than a sad boxwood..

Please tell us where you bought them so we can be forewarned. Im in the Hudson Valley…

gardengal..are the boxwoods in your area still attractive?..my area is full of ugly boxwoods..mine didn't have blight..when I took my samples blight wasn't on the map in Indiana..but mine were declining and I didn't want them..I was aware of blight so took samples in..

I love boxwood..made me sad..

mine were diagnosed with these 2 diseases..

Boxwood blight is present here as well although perhaps not to the same degree of severity as it is back east. But I dislike box intensely and would never plant it nor do I spec it for my design clients. There is a planting across the street from me and while appearing heathy enough, has that unpleasant golden bronzy cast that box takes on in winter. Very unappealing!!

btw, psillids and leaf miners are very common but they are insect pests that have recoverable damage. There is no recovery from blight.

Ugh, thanks all for the info. I bought these at Hilltop Nursery in Croton on Hudson last fall. They looked fine when I bought them, but clearly there was a problem. I will remove and destroy - hopefully the blight has not had a chance to spread to the other boxwoods I have, all of which still look beautiful.

gardengal..mine were Korean and had nice winter color which is much appreciated during the winter in Indiana..

I spend an enormous amount of time outside..I don't like the idea of being in close proximity to insecticides so I don't use any..so I ripped the boxwoods out..they went into trash bags..I didn't compost them..

biondanonima..I have a few left..I was out of time (winter was coming) and energy..some seem ok for now..but I wouldn't be surprised if that changes..I was told those conditions are contagious..

If anyone is familiar with the Gardener's World series with Monty Don (England), last year he ripped out his boxwoods because of the blight and the insects. That's a large estate he has, so I'm sure it pained him in the wallet as well as in the heart to remove them. He offered other alternatives to Boxwood (such as Yews - which I personally don't care for because they are poisonous), but in the end it was a loosing battle for him trying to keep them going............Maryl

Maryl..if I could get Monty Don's show I'd watch..interesting that he removed his boxwoods too..

it was sickening to "undo" all of my hard work when I ripped them out..🙁

Monty Don does not live on a large estate. Longmeadow, where Gardener's World is filmed, is only two acres and the boxwood hedging was only a very small part of that and he rips out and replaces plants all the time so the impact on his wallet is probably negligible. And he very likely expenses much of his costs to the show.

btw, more common garden plants than not are toxic or poisonous to some degree but most gardeners do not let that deter them from planting and growing them. Poisonings by plant ingestion are extremely rare.

Japanese holly, Ilex crenata, is an excellent replacement for boxwood.

I bought most of my boxwoods in the fall on clearance..even so I probably spent $600? $700? or more..it was disappointing to rip them out..

nicholsworth, You can get Gardener's World on Britbox. Current season is on, but there are past seasons also.

It's on YouTube as well.

cooper and callirhoe..thank you..I didn't look too hard did I? 😂..I wondered if it would be somewhat irrelevant since my climate is colder..so didn't look much..

I'll check it out..

I had 113 boxwoods

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really nichols ... its one thing to be addicted to hosta... but boxwood .. crikey dude ... lol .. at least the hosta can be variations on a theme .. green.. yellow.. blue.. variegated ... etc ...

.. you just had 113 green bushes ..

ken..but they gave me structure and some green in the winter!..

hate to brag but my yard in winter looked better than all of my neighbors..

but when they started to drop leaves, discolor etc..I could give them up..

gardengal, are you sure enough of the diagnosis that the OP shouldn’t get it confirmed by taking a sample to Cooperative Extension? I live in the town with the nursery where he bought them. Should I assume that the blight will spread throughout the area even if I dont shop at that nursery? I have some very old, very beautiful boxwoods. Is there anything I can do to stave off their demise??

The blight is already very well established throughout the east coast so there will always be a risk. The blight is typically introduced by infected nursery stock but it can also be transmitted by clothes, shoes, garden tools and spray irrigation/splashing water.

This has all happened in the last 10 years so it is a very aggressive and fast moving pathogen. Pachysandra and sweetbox (Sarcococca) are also vulnerable and a potential source of infection.

Gardengal: I had to chuckle at what you consider NOT an estate. The 2 acres of land occupied by Monty Don's Longmeadow gardens seems like an estate to me compared to my small suburban plot. Yew is very toxic and has an established record of killing livestock as well as small children. Ever seen a small puppy or kitten "test" out the taste of a new plant? The amount of risk can be assessed by the home owner on an individual basis of course, but at least they should know that there is a risk..............I have a small amount of new Box myself which I would hate to loose, but before I went with boxwood, I found several other choices, such as Yupon Holly, Distyliums, Euonymous varieties etc. that I could have used if necessary. It's really a shame about the blight. So much commercial and private damage done to what once was a standard go-to plant..............Maryl

Maryl, I am a professional horticulturist, garden educator and have gardened both personally and professionally for more than 50 years. And with small kids and cats and dogs. I am fully aware of plant toxicities, probably more than most. Documented human fatalities from yews are very. very rare.

Do you feed your kids cherries? Apples? Do you grow tomatoes?

just saw these..not sure if they're available..a screenshot of some disease resistant boxwoods..anyone have any?..or know about them?..

Since these were cheap little plants anyway, I decided better safe than sorry and pulled them out this afternoon. On the upside, I noticed as I was taking them out that the kalmia nearby looks like it might have some buds/signs of life, so hopefully it can be saved!

Gardengal: I guess I've been put in my place alright................Peace be with you...................Maryl

The funny thing is ..... box is also poisonous.

Regarding the ’estate’ terminology. Over here two acres would be considered a very large garden but an estate would be much bigger and wouldn’t just be garden.

Maryl, I am sorry if you were offended by my comments. This topic - toxic or poisonous plants -comes up all the time and there appears to be a lot of misunderstandings about them. The point I was trying to make is that poisonous plants abound in our gardens. In fact, more common plants are poisonous/toxic than those that are not, including some very common plants we routinely eat. To summarily dismiss or exclude plants just because they may have toxic properties when ingested would make for a very bare and boring landscape!!

Small children and pets should be supervised in the garden until they are trained or able to learn what can be safely eaten or not. I would assume most adults are smart enough to make that decision for themselves (but you never know :-)).

I would be much more concerned of planting plants whose toxicity is dispersed just by touch. They too are unlikely to kill you but they can make life very unpleasant!

Perhaps consider something native like Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)?