mountain lover

plural mountain lovers · alternative mountain-lover

1. uncountableusuallyAny member of the species Paxistima myrsinites, Oregon boxwoods.

   The berries of mountain lover were eaten by California Natives.

   1994, Ethnobotany of the California Indians: Aboriginal uses of California's indigenous plants, page 102

   2 more examples

   It can be used in many of the same locations as boxwood. However, mountain lover is completely winter hardy, whereas boxwood is only marginally so.

   1893, Experiment Station Bulletin, numbers 641-660

   Mountain lover is only a foot high and has a spread of three to four feet.

   2001 November 11, Patricia A. Taylor, “Cuttings: In Flowerless Seasons, the Charm of Foliage”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 27 May 2015

2. countableusuallyUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see mountain, lover.

   It’s a landscape that Titian, the Dolomites’ most famous native son and mountain lover, captured for posterity as a background to some of his greatest paintings.

   1993 May 9, Richard Wightman, “Dolomite Dreams: The Fantastical Peaks of Northern Italy”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 09 Jul 2025