EVERGREEN Plant listsBroadleaf evergreen shrubs provide color year round, making winter interest in the garden easy. The following evergreen shrubs are all broadleaf shrubs with foliage in shades of green.
Mountain Laurel ‘Freckles’ (Kalmia latifolia ‘Freckles’) – A native evergreen shrub, the mountain laurel prefers acidic soil with good drainage and part shade to full shade. The mountain laurel is a broadleaf evergreen shrub and ‘Freckles’ has white flowers with maroon specks on the petals that truly look like freckles. ‘Freckles’ is a compact evergreen shrub growing only 3-6’ tall.
Green Gem Hardy Boxwood (Buxus ‘Green Gem’) – One of the hardiest broadleaf evergreen shrubs, the ‘Green Gem’ boxwood is hardy to zone 3b with protection or zone 4 unprotected. A fragrant shrub, this boxwood is a compact 2’x2’ and keeps its rounded shape with little to no pruning. Glossy evergreen leaves and inconspicuous but fragrant white blooms are added features of this broadleaf shrub. Protect the shrub from drying winter winds.Evergreen shrubs add color to the garden year round and can become the planning foundation for an entire garden design. The best thing about these plants is they provide stunning color accents because...[More]
In the winter, evergreen plants move from the background elements we build the rest of our gardens around, to the primary players that are hugely important. A winter landscape without spots of green would be bleak indeed. Casually dismissed at times, evergreens come in several categories.Be aware that even with evergreens, many plants change color during winter. Some plants turn sickly shades of brownish-green such as the eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) although not all individual plants will. Others, such as some azaleas and rhododendrons turn lovely reddish or yellow colors on leaves that last the season long.Consider looking at evergreens from the following color categories:
Conifer Evergreen Shrubs
Broadleaf Green Foliage Shrubs
Varigated Foliage Shrubs
Colored Foliage Shrubs
Also, don’t forget that evergreen plants in the winter garden do not just come in the form of shrubs or trees. Many perennials will hold cover through the winter and are evergreen, or semi-evergreen. Some of these plants include lavender, hellborus, many sedum varieties, coral bells (Heuchera spp.), yucca plants, some ornamental grasses and more.
Evergreen ground covers include ajuga, creeping phlox, thyme, and creeping juniper.
Vines that are generally evergreen include English ivy,...[More]
My favorite culinary herbs -- Greek oregano, thyme, dwarf lavender, winter savory, common sage, tarragon, and exotic mints -- have as many uses in the garden as they have in the kitchen. These are mounding plants that have gree or gray-green foliage and grow between 6 inches and 2 feet tall. All of them fit nicely among annual flowers, perennials, vegetables and even evergreens.
Here are some attractive mates to these and other herbs:
Annuals: alyssum, dwarf nasturtiums, calendulas, zinnias, and marigolds.
Perennials: coreopsis, purple coneflowers, and all sorts of dianthus, geraniums, and yarrow.
Vegetables: peppers, eggplants, and bulbing fennel.
Evergreens: low shrubs, such as germander, and dwarf forms of boxwood, myrtle, and barberry.
