Evergreen Plants

Evergreen Plants
Evergreen plants stay green all year long.  They are typically darker in color.  Most evergreens have needles (like Pine Trees) or have a waxy wet looking leaf (such as Euonymus).

For shrubs, spirea, euonymus, and Mugo Pine are the old standbys.  For trees, the Baby Blue Eyes, Alpine Fir, Colorado Blue Spruce, and the Black Hills Spruce are some of the favorites.

Privacy Screen - Arborvitae
Thuja Arborvitae makes an excellent privacy screen.  They should be planted in full sun with good drainage.  It is a hardy plant and deer do not like to eat it.  It grows up to fifty feet tall and is 4-5 feet wide. 

Euonymus
There are lots of variations of Euonymus and they all look great.  One of the most sought after is the Burning Bush.  It looks dark green in the summer, but turns a brilliant red in the fall.  Other popular Euonymus is golden and variegated.

Spirea
Gold mound spirea is the most popular.  Gold Flame Spirea is probably the most attractive spirea at any nursery.  However, Gold Mound is superior in a landscape.  It’s slightly lighter “fluorescent” leaves makes all the other plants seem to light up.  In addition it blooms pink flowers for much of the year.

Mugo Pine
Mugo pine looks just like a pine tree, but it’s a low growing shrub. They look great with red barberry.  They should be planted in odd numbers for best visual effect.

Barberry
The bright red barberry contrasts well with other plants.  It is a low growing small shrub.  It has prickly thorns all over it.  It comes in two colors; red and gold.  It is very commonly used in landscaping.  The Gold Barberry color is similar to Gold Mound Spirea.  It makes a good choice when the size needs to be somewhat smaller.

Boxwood  
Boxwood are known for the well manicured English gardens.  They can be shaped well and when planted in rows you can make quite a maze with them.  There are many sizes of boxwoods.  The dwarf varieties are especially useful when you are landscaping a small yard.

Juniper
Junipers grow quickly and are very hardy.  They are drought tolerant and disease resistant.  They are also inexpensive.  Many people choose Juniper for the low cost and hardiness of the plant.

Baby Blue Eyes and Colorado Blue Spruce
These two trees have similar design purposes.  They bring in a surprising element of blue.  In addition, the tree needles are fine enough that you get a sense of refinement when looking at these trees.  The main difference is that the Baby Blue Eyes is a much smaller tree.  The Colorado Blue Spruce gets huge. 

Alpine Fir
These pines are sought after for their elegant look.  They are considered to be ornamental trees. They can die easily if not taken care of properly.  They often burn in the summer, if not watered enough.  They can also die if the elevation is too low or if there is too much pollution.  They grow tall and thin.  You can see through the branches of the tree.

Black Hills Spruce
This is what you expect from a pine tree. It looks like a typical Christmas tree. It is hardy and drought tolerant.  Some people plant them and use them for a living Christmas tree.