Evergreens particularly noted in winter

By Jimmy Williams

Save for horrendous spring freezes, now almost forgotten, this has been a fine gardening year. Despite the unadulterated ecstasy we have experienced this kind summer and autumn, brilliant leaves and all, somehow it seems almost a relief when they, like Sammy Kaye, swing and sway down to the mellow earth below. It will be work rounding them up, but the sharper and more focused winter view adds another complete dimension to gardens that have been properly designed and are prepared for it.

Evergreens spring forth from nowhere. In summer they’re lost in all that other surrounding green, but in the winter they are in sharp contrast to the grays and browns that otherwise dominate the landscape. You can be over-evergreened to the point that a heaviness predominates, but this is not too common in our area. Further north, where conifers generally do better and are more plentiful, the danger in that direction is greater.

We will, of course, be more than ready by April for new leafage, but that is what makes gardening. Take the anticipation out of the formula and a lot would be lost.

Evergreen specimens are particularly noted in winter. Stripped of much of the green of their surrounding deciduous neighbors, they stand alone for four or five months. A shapely hemlock or sheared holly (or, in the case of the wild landscape, a particularly attractive cedar) brings joy all out of proportion to their summer contribution.

Evergreen trees and shrubs lose their leaves, just as deciduous things do. It just happens over a long period (though sometimes, as in the case with pines, more briefly) and new ones are already in place, so the change is seldom noticed.

Some broad-leaf evergreens, in fact, can be objectionable on this score. Evergreen magnolias and hollies often make one huge mess beneath their branches as leaves fall almost constantly all year, but more heavily in spring when they are particularly unwelcome. The magnolias also drop large "cobs" which had earlier container red seeds.

The best answer for these kinds of trees is to let them branch to the ground so as to disguise the clutter below. Just leave it to rot. If your tree has already been limbed up, you have to deal with the residue as best you can. The new mulching mowers do an excellent job of grinding it into particles so tiny they need no removal, and even make a suitable mulch when left in place.

Fallen leaves don’t bother me unduly, but they should be removed from fine turf so that it won’t get smothered. Again, mulching mowers save enormous work. Baggers are good, too. Leaves are easier to rake, if you’re reduced to that, when they are dry.