Evergreens play a vital role in many gardens. Sue Bradley looks at some great choices.
Handsome and hardworking, evergreens are the backbone of many great gardens. They do a great deal of heavy lifting throughout the year, providing structure and form against which more exuberant and colourful species can shine. Often it’s only in winter that evergreens really capture our attention, looking good when their showier bed mates have died away.
Spring is a good time to plant evergreens, when the soil is warming and, usually, damp. Ensure they are watered well while they’re getting established because deep roots are especially important for those destined to create hedges and topiary, allowing them to access plenty of nutrition to cope with the stresses exacted by regular shaping with secateurs and shears.
Despite being labelled ‘evergreens’, they come in a variety of hues including yellow, purple and red and bi-colours. Before choosing, remember that they are a major investment, are likely to be in place for a long time and could take a great deal of energy to remove. But with the right decisions, they will perform to perfection, ensuring outside spaces look good all year round.
Great for hedging
Oleaster
It’s easy to overlook oleasters, but the evergreen members of the Elaeagnus family create great hedges and backdrops for herbaceous borders and their foliage is useful for flower arranging. Great choices include E. x submacrophylla AGM, which has green leaves with small silver spots and silverywhite undersides that create a shimmering effect. It produces scented, creamy white flowers in autumn and tolerates salt, shade and dry soils. E x submacrophylla ‘Gilt Edge’ AGM has green leaves with yellow margins.
Maximum height: 4m (13ft)
Position: Full sun or partial shade
Soil: Moist, well-drained and reasonably fertile
New Zealand privet
As a dense hedge with attractive applegreen oval leaves that provides a beautiful backdrop for borders, Griselinia littoralis AGM is a great choice. It can also be planted in a mixed border, providing a foil for more colourful or blowsy species. Expect small yellow-green flowers followed by purple fruits if male and female plants are grown together. Good for coastal areas.
Maximum height: 4 - 8m (13ft – 26ft)
Position: Full sun
Soil: Moist and well-drained
Yew
Versatility and longevity are two of the hallmarks of yew (Taxus baccata). Often grown as a dense hedge, it responds well to close clipping for clean lines. Yew can be used to provide geometric shapes and topiary or serve as a stand-alone specimen in the ground or a container. Yew produces needle-like leaves and red fruits in autumn and winter. Consider Irish yew T. bac
