Evergreen Shrubs

Evergreen shrubs buying guide

With over 600 evergreen shrubs on offer the choice here at Thompson & Morgan can be a little overwhelming. So here's a quick guide to help you find the right evergreen shrub for your garden needs.

First of all think where and why you want an evergreen shrub. Of course there's the low-maintenance, long-lasting colour and great value aspect, but do you want to brighten the patio pots, bolster borders or build a hedge? Do you want privacy and security, scent and flowers, or something to flavour your cooking? Whatever your wheres and whys, read on to help you choose an evergreen shrub you adore.

Evergreen shrubs for hedging

Holly plants are particularly effective hedging plants. Their dense evergreen foliage provides a brilliant barrier, spiky edges deter intruders and bright berries are a welcome winter treat for birds. One of the most useful evergreen hedging shrubs is buxus sempervirens, or box to its friends. Traditionally clipped into boxy boundaries, the glossy green leaves lend themselves to fabulous topiary too.

Scented and flowering evergreen shrubs

Daphne shrubs combine both long-lasting blooms with an incredible fragrance – try 'Perfume Princess' for the worlds most fragrant shrub or 'Eternal Fragrance' for flowers from April through to October. For a subtler show and scent, add some lovely lavender plants to path edges or as a low hedge. Butterflies and bees will soon be making the most of their nectar rich flowers.

Shrubs for cooking

Perfect in pots or borders near the kitchen door, bay trees make elegant additions to patio containers while their leaves work wonders in stews, casseroles, curries and soups. Rosemary plants work well as hedging and in herb gardens, and complement a wide range of dishes from lasagne to lamb roasts.

Quickest growing evergreen shrubs

Many evergreen shrubs are vigorous growers, but some excel including buddleja, choisya, pyracantha and photinia. Buddleja is a low-maintenance, fast-growing shrub with conical flowers in late summer to autumn that are irresistible to butterflies. Choisya offers fragrant blooms and is tolerant of difficult growing conditions like coastal gardens. Photinia 'Red Robin' is a popular variety for its bright scarlet foliage in spring, and pyracantha makes an impenetrable hedge thanks to its thorns.

For a library of helpful guidance visit our shrubs hub.