The 7 Best Evergreen Plants for Pots

What are Evergreen plants?

Evergreen plants are a great way to bring more character and life to your garden as they require minimum looking after. This article will tell you about the best evergreen plants for pots that you could invest in to last all year round.

There are a wide variety of evergreen plants suitable for planting or potting that you can choose from – it is just a matter of choosing from the selection available which is the best option for you and your garden.

In this article, we will look at:

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1. Dwarf Conifers

One of the most popular evergreen plants for pots is dwarf conifers. On average, dwarf conifers can be very restrictive plants due to their size, as they are largely considered to be mini-Christmas trees or bonsai shaped.

Conifers are renowned for being a staple for backyard landscapes, and a valuable shelter for birds and other creatures. Conifers are also slow growers and can take up to 30 years to reach their maximum size, but this can be varied, depending on their growth rate.

Varieties

Please find below the extensive range of dwarf conifers you can traditionally find:

• Abies (True Firs)
• Cephalotaxus (plum yew)
• Chamaecyparis (‘pisifera,’ ‘obtusa,’ etc.)
• Cryptomeria japonica (Japanese cedar)
• Cupressus (sempervirens – Italian cypress)
• Juniperus/Junipers
• Picea (Spruces)
• Pinus (Mugo pines)
• Thuja (‘Mirjam,’ ‘orientalis,’ ‘Aurea nana.’)
• Tsuga (Hemlocks)

Benefits

• Because of their large structure, dwarf conifers can be used to vastly improve the design and symmetry of a given space. In this instance, it would be for your garden.
• To make them suitable evergreen potting plants, the dwarf conifer will need a good-sized accessible space for potting and eventually, cutting.
• They are low maintenance and are suitable for small gardens.
• Conifers have a range of topiary prospects and can be pruned into many shapes to give them a more creative appearance.

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2. Evergreen Trees

Another variation of Evergreen potting plants that are essential for your garden is Evergreen trees, which traditionally stay green and can last throughout multiple seasons. However, they usually lose their foliage between the winter and dry seasons.

Like dwarf trees, evergreens can be restrictive because of their large size and their distinct Christmas-tree feature.

Varieties

Here is a wide range of evergreen trees that you may come across:

• Arbutus unedo (strawberry tree)
• Chamaerops (hardy palms)
• Citrus
• Eriobotrya japonica (loquat)
• Eucalyptus
• Feijoa sellowiana (pineapple guava)
• Ilex (Holly)
• Laurus nobilis (bay tree)
• Magnolia grandiflora (bull bay)
• Olea europaea (olive tree)

Benefits

• Evergreen trees are a bold plant and can stand out on your patio or container garden area.
• There is even a large variety of evergreen trees that yield food qualities, such as the strawberry and citrus trees providing fruit after a long duration and the bay tree providing a culinary herb.
• Evergreen trees also help to conserve energy due to their capacity to indulge in photosynthesis over their planted surface level in appropriate conditions.

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3. Shrubs

Shrubs are traditionally small or medium-sized perennial, evergreen plants. Its properties are wooden and have persistent rigid stems that appear above ground. Shrubs can be both evergreen and deciduous. What makes them distinguishable from trees is their multiple stems and a shorter height, ranging below 6-10m tall.

Shrubs are handy towards being a functional feature for a landscape to provide a beautiful view as well as seasonal interest. They can also attract bees, butterflies, and other insects to your garden.

Varieties

Shrubs come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and you may find some under the following names:

Aucuba japonica	Azaleas
Bamboos	Box
Camellias	Ceanothus
Choisya	Cotoneaster
Daphnes	Heathers
Hebe	Lavenders
Photinias	Rosemary
Sage	Skimmias
Thyme	Viburnums
Winter savoury

Benefits

• Evergreen pot shrubs thrive in colder climates and can spark interest all year round.
• They provide the best results in colder months, flowering and producing berries, and attracting wildlife.
• Evergreen pot shrubs can be a good backdrop in your garden against bords to help provide a densely beautiful hedge.

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4. Climbers

Evergreen climbers can be grown throughout the year and are perfect for creating a feral green aesthetic in your garden.

Their main feature is climbing up fences, arches, pergolas, and other types of garden furniture.

Varieties

• Clematis (Evergreen, winter-flowering, ‘cirrhosa.’)
• Euonymus fortunei
• Garrya elliptica (silk tassel)
• Hydrangea seemannii
• Hedera (Ivy)
• Parthenocissus (Virginia creeper)
• Trachelospermum jasmonoides (Star jasmine)

Benefits

• Evergreen climbers take up little space, allowing you to add more plants to your garden.
• Climbers are valuable for screening and interest.
• They are clingy plants, so they can grow along anything with a strong structure.
• Also suitable for hanging baskets.

Essential garden tools to help with pruning, trimming and more

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5. Grasses

Evergreen grasses are a great way to add an extra feature to your garden and company for other plants, which helps to enhance the contrasting foliage.

They are also easy to care for, and evergreen grasses only need tidying when removing the previous years’ flower stems and dead foliage or adding them into new pots.

Varieties

Anemanthele lessoniana	Carex
Deschampsia	Festuca glauca
Miscanthus Sinensis (‘Morning Light’)	Stipa tenuissima

Benefits

• Evergreen grasses are better to grow in standalone pots but can look good on the eye amongst other surrounding evergreen plants in pots, large or small.
• As evergreen grasses have a softer and naturally flowing appearance, this allows them to break up more in heavier planting schemes and make a container-populated garden softer and lighter.

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6. Herbaceous Plants

Evergreen Perennials (or Herbaceous perennials) traditionally die in the winter but can usually grow the following year again.

Here are the common types of herbaceous evergreen perennials you may find:

Ajuga	Androsace
Armeria	Asplenium (Evergreen ferns)
Dianthus ssp.	Erigeon ssp.
Fatsia	Globularia
Hepatia	Heuchera
Phormium	Selosperma

Benefits

• Provides an extra amount of foliage and colour all year round.
• Evergreen herbaceous will traditionally provide aromatic foliage.

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7. Succulents

Succulents are a splendid evergreen plants for pots that can be grown outdoors and indoors, making great houseplants if you are into indoor gardening.

Effective outdoors towards protecting sheltered or drier spots of your garden, which is very useful in the winter.

Varieties

Such succulents include:

Aeoniums	Agave
Aloes	Crassula
Echeveria	Haworthia
Kalanchoe	Opuntia
Sedums	Sempervivums

Benefits

• Relatively easy to maintain, as they are free-draining and look good in sunny spots without the worry of them being burnt and are an excellent way to look fresh in your household as well.

Check out fun and interesting facts about shrubs here

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Going Evergreen All Year Round

As you can see from this article, there are many evergreen plants for pots that come in various forms, and you can customise them in your house or garden at any time of the year. There are many names to remember here, but if one name or image stood out to you, feel free to expand your knowledge further with them and then consider purchasing one of our pots to store them in for extra comfort and handling.

FAQs

Sources

Sefton Meadows. (n.d.). Garden Tools & Equipment. [Accessed 25/03/23] Retrieved from: https://seftonmeadows.co.uk/garden-accessories/plant-lawn-care/garden-tools-equipment

Just Fun Facts. (2021, March 15). Interesting Facts about Shrubs. [Accessed 24/03/23] Retrieved from: https://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-shrubs/