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Grow an evergreen tree if year-round foliage is essential to you.
Evergreens don’t drop their leaves in fall and providewinter interest, but their usefulness goes beyond that.
They’re constants in the landscape.
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Evergreens make up the “bones” of your design and provide the backdrop for other plants.
However, a few of these trees are toxic to humans and animals, as noted below.
What Is an Evergreen?
David Beaulieu
An evergreen plant retains its live leaves throughout the year if it grows in asuitable zone.
Although"evergreen" and “conifer"are closely related, the two terms differ.
Trees that are “cone-bearing” and drop their leaves are"deciduous” and not evergreen.
David Beaulieu
It grows to 80 feet tall in the wild, and older trees have deeply furrowed bark.
This tree makes a good shade tree, but many homeowners usually want something shorter.
The weeping white pine (Pinus strobus’Pendula') grows to only 15 feet tall.
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Pines can be messy, so avoid planting them if you desire alow-maintenancetree.
Eastern white pines bear large cones valued for crafts but are a raking headache.
The trees also drop pitch, which is especially problematic if you park under them.
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The needles are 5 inches long, dark green most of the year, and glossy.
In winter, they may pick up some bronzy tints.
To appreciate what makes them special, you must touch them: they have a rubbery texture.
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The cones are small and usually not a problem.
A slow grower, this native Japanese tree eventually attains a height of about 25 feet.
Exfoliating bark adds to its winter interest.
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Its pine needles are 8 to 18 inches.
Longleaf pine is a slow grower with reddish-brown bark with paper-like scales.
Harvest the needles for use as"pine-straw" mulch.
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Japanese Dwarf Pine
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Some evergreen trees are small and grow slowly.
Having options means it’s possible for you to tailor your tree selection to your needs or specifications.
These characteristics make this pine lower-maintenance since this Japanese native rarely needs pruning.
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It is an excellent plant selection for low-rainfall areas such as southern California.
It is long-lived, grows moderately, and has attractive features.
The trunk is long and straight, with flaking bark (a rusty color near the top).
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The needles are relatively long (up to 4 inches).
Yaupon Holly
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Most evergreens have needles, but some have broad leaves.
Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria), a native of the American Southeast, is a small tree.
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Plant several in a row to form aprivacy hedge.
If you want the females to bear berries, grow a male as a pollinator.
The red berries of this tree offer a vibrant color that few evergreen trees can match.
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Note that holly and its berries are toxic to people and pets.
What Is a Broadleaf Evergreen?
A broadleaf evergreen qualifies as an evergreen in the same way that others do.
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The only difference is in what the leaf looks like.
Needled evergreens have skinny, needle-like leaves, while broadleaf evergreens have wide leaves.
Live Oak
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The live oak (Quercus virginiana) is another broadleaf example.
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This tree, often dripping with Spanish moss, is native to the Southeastern coast of the United States.
Oak trees have mild toxicity to humans.They are toxic to horses.
Many people choose broadleaf evergreens over needled ones because they have flowers and berries that needled evergreens lack.
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This tree boasts fragrant flowers, among other benefits.
It’s a popular choice when a tall privacy hedge is required.
The small cones are not messy, and the rich, green foliage is dense.
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However, although it is more deer-resistant than most types, it is susceptible to deer damage.
This plant is toxic to horses.
Besides its blue foliage, it is valued for its hardiness (to zone 2).
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The cones are medium-sized and ripen to a pale buff color.
Some go a step further and adorn them with Christmas tree ornaments for the holidays.
The tiny (1/2 inch long) green needles are aromatic.
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Its tight, densely-packed growth habit gives dwarf Alberta spruce tree a “fuzzy” look.
It rarely produces cones; when it does, they’re small, so there’s little mess.
Norway Spruce
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Thisfast-growingEuropean native (Picea abies) is another favorite inChristmas decorations.
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It shares superb cold hardiness (to zone 2) with the Colorado blue spruce.
The 2-inch cones start purple but age to a reddish-brown, affording winter interest.
Another benefit is that the tree’s tolerance to drought andsaltmakes it suitable for street plantings.
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The challenge in developing this specimen is that it is very particular about climate.
It wants cool, wet winters and dry, warm summers.
Where these conditions do not prevail, the tree tends to perform poorly.
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However, it has its limitations.
A large tree (70 feet tall, 25 to 35 feet wide) is ill-suited to small yards.
Also, it is best grown in cool, moist, well-drained soils.
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Its shallow root system presents a further limitation: grow it where it will be protected from the wind.
Canadian hemlock is unrelated to poison hemlock (Conium maculatum) and is not toxic to humans and pets.
It has an unusual cone, which is small and bluish and is eaten by various wild bird species.
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The scale-like foliage is a selling point.
This Mediterranean native has erect cones up to 4 inches long.
They start greenish-purple and mature to reddish brown.
David Beaulieu
This large tree (40 to 100 feet tall, 40 to 80 feet wide) needs space.
This cultivar grows 12 feet tall and wide and is better suited to small yards.
It can be trained to droop, creating interest in the landscape.
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It is native to the Atlas Mountains of northwestern Africa.
It ismonoecious, with distinct male and female coneson the same tree.
It has drooping branches and is native to the western Himalayas.
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Like blue Atlas cedar, it is monoecious; it has larger cones than blue Atlas cones.
Cones may take many years to appear.
Leyland cypress (Cuprocyparis leylandii), a hybrid, is a false cypress.
The plant is very popular in the American Southeast, particularly as a hedge plant.
A fast grower, it sports flattened sprays of foliage on upright branches.
The small cones are dark brown.
It is debatable whether Leyland cypress is toxic to animals.
This Asian native features spreading horizontal branches that droop at the tips.
The globe-like cones are 1/3 to 1/2 inch in diameter.
These spherical cones are 1 inch in diameter and grayish-brown.
Yew bark, needles, and fruit are toxic to humans and pets.
Many conifers (cone-bearing trees) are evergreen and most have needles or thin needle-looking leaves.
Spruce and arborvitae trees are among the least messy of the evergreens.
North Carolina State Extension.
North Carolina State Extension.
Very dangerous and toxic for horses: Thuja trees.
Canadian Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis).
Are Leyland Cypress Trees Toxic to Horses?Cornell University.
Poisonous and Non-Poisonous Plants.National Capital Poison Center Poison Control.
Meet the Trees of the Midwest.
