Evergreen shrubs

From Gardening Wiki

There are a number of interesting evergreen shrubs.

None is so popular as the Rhododendrons. But these like a soil free from lime, and if you live in a limestone region, before you attempt to grow them dig out the beds to a depth of three feet, filling in with good wood-soil or leaf mold.

Give good drainage by putting a layer of ashes at bottom of the trench. The secret of success with Rhododendrons is to keep the roots cool and moist. In Winter they should be deeply mulched with leaves. In Summer they must have an abundance of water. In some Rhododendron plantations a "syringe" of water plays upon the beds continually. They like shade usually, but often by a proper choice of plants which have been growing in the sun, they succeed just as well in the sun. In Winter a framework of burlap gives the protection from the wind. They should always be massed, for Rhododendrons, unless in beds by themselves, are either apt to receive too much fussy care or none at all. The best early varieties are R. roseum elegans, an old rose colored variety, and R. everestianum, a lavender, both flowering in late May. Then in early June we have album elegans, a large white; Mrs. G. S. Sargent, a pink; caractacus, a red; purpureum, a purple; and Lady Grey Egerton, a silvery gray lavender.

There are a number of Azaleas which are most brilliant, the best being Azalea pontica and A mollis, in the various colors, and Azalea amoena which is a superb claret pink.

A shrub which has proven perfectly hardy is the Japanese Holly (Ilex crenata, var. microphylla) ; it grows about four feet tall and is excellent. The American Holly is hard to transplant, but seems hardy as far north as Gape God. The leaves should be removed and plants transplanted in the Spring.

The Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia), which has been proposed as the national flower of the United States, is, perhaps, the best evergreen shrub grown; it succeeds a little easier than Rhododendrons and without protection of the tops retains a good appearance all through the Winter. The Mahonia, or Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium), is an excellent shrub; it succeeds perfectly if planted so that leaves are shaded from Winter sun. It surely looks fresh, green and glossy in Midwinter.