Evergreen conifers and why they are ever popular
Conifers can make life difficult for other plants – but their evergreen appeal has a sound basis
Conifers are a most diverse family of plants, interesting whatever the size of your garden. In my view, they are among the most beautiful and graceful trees in the world. They are best summed up as a slightly aloof family, always grouped together on garden centre benches no matter how diverse they are.
The versatile conifer has no rival for adding year-round interest to a garden in a broad range of sizes, forms, colours, and textures. They are a large group and include members of the pine and yew families. There are about 550 species of conifer with the name meaning ‘cone-bearing’.
Their solitary nature is caused by the fact that large conifer trees make it difficult for other plants to thrive under, or close to, them. This is because their network of surface roots dries out the soil.
Woodland plants have learned to adapt so crocus and anemones will manage to survive, as will Aquilegia, as their root style gives them a good chance to manage dry soil.
Not all conifers are as splendid as others. Among their unruly cousins (there is always one) are the infamous ‘garden bullies’...Leylandii. They have given conifers a bad name because they grow tall and dense and block out sunlight from neighbouring gardens. But in general, conifers are law abiding and more versatile in terms of colours than you might think, available in red, bronze, yellow or even blue.
The colour is dictated by the temperature of the habitat. The Thuja ‘Rheingold’ is a yellowy-red in the summer and turns to bronze in the winter while the Cryptomeria japonica ‘Elegans’ is greenred in the summer turning a bronze-red in winter.
Most importantly, conifers don’t have to be planted all together in a conifer bed. They can be used creatively to complement other plants in the garden. Juniperus ‘ Blue Arrow’, for example, gives a heather bed a focal point and some height.
Conifers play a leading part in many different styles of garden especially Italian and Japanese styles. I am currently keen on Italianstyle gardens so I always look to introducing the classic Italian conifer Cupressus sempervirens ‘Glauca’ to any plant schemes where it will work. It is an outstanding conifer with its attractive blue-green foliage providing a strong colour and is an ideal conifer to dominate a landscaped garden with its distinct narrow form.
It likes well-drained soil and a sunny spot in the garden. Variations include Cupressus sempervirens ‘Stricta,’ which forms a neat narrow, pencil-like tree that is narrower than other varieties.
Its use should be restrained, planted in twos against a minimum of a twostorey house. I have heard them described as being like exclamation points, which is a wonderful description. Even though Italian cypress trees do well in dry, sunny sites, they still need regular watering until the roots get deep enough to get the tree through dry periods. Once established, they will need very little watering.
When creating a Japanese-style garden with conifers the general rule of thumb is to plant at least two evergreens for every deciduous plant. This ensures there is a lot of structure to your garden and year- round visual interest. Several species are traditionally used in Japanese gardens – Pinus, Cedrus, Juniperus, Cryptomeria, Podocarpus, Taxus, and Chamaecyparis.
Then there is the Japanese umbrella pine Sciadopityaceae. It is a uniquely shaped pine tree with large needles and fine cones. The foliage develops a bronze tint in winter and can be found in a wide range of settings across Japan.
Leaves on most trees are structured in such a way as to maximise their exposure to light without shading each other. The unique needle-like leaves that conifers have developed combat dry periods.
Conifers are most often found in colder places at higher altitudes. Many varieties such as fir trees allow their branches to hang down at an angle, enabling them to shed snow. They are evergreen because they need all the light available to them and therefore do not shed their needles. There is always an exception to the rule and larch, unusually for a conifer, is not evergreen. Its slender, soft needles turn yellow in autumn before dropping. Originally from northern Europe, the fast-growing larch was introduced to this part of the world in the 17th century for use in forestry, as its timber is durable and versatile.
Conifers can also be used on their own as a special feature in a lawn, or a central bed in a driveway because of their angular qualities. They are excellent planted beside water as their strong shapes make wonderful reflections.
When growing any plants in containers, water is a very important factor. Conifers are no different but they will not show the signs of incorrect watering as quickly as other plants.
Dwarf conifers need to be pruned rather like shrubs. New spring growth is cut back by half to keep them compact. Then the whole tree is shaped in August, creating ‘transparency’ to pick up the shape of individual branches.
It is important to understand that pruning should be a cautious affair. To create a neat shape start trimming when the conifers are still young. Do not wait until they have become too large. Some experts say that yew (Taxus) is the one conifer that can be pruned down to the bare bones, as it always produces new growth but be careful.... it is very slow to recover.
Finally, if you have room for a statement tree then Atlantic ‘Glauca Pendula’ weeping blue cedar is dramatic. Growing up to seven metres its style is majestic. They grow at a very slow pace, but their striking blue colour offers year-round interest, and is outstanding in winter.