Arbovitae - Evergreen Shrubs for Every Landscape

The name means "tree of life," and the arbovitae lives up to its name. An evergreen shrub, it continues to live through the winter, without dropping needles, and the wide variety of arbovitae available means that there's one for every garden, hedge, or landscape border. 

Unlike most evergreen shrubs, the arbovitae leaves are rarely prickly, like pine or cedar. Instead, they have a soft, springy feel to them, a bit like heather. They range from low-growers of only about three feet to enormous trees of forty feet or more. 

One of the most interesting of the arbovitae is the "Rheingold," sometimes misspelled "Rhinegold." Although it doesn't drop its needles in the winter, and therefore classifies as an evergreen shrub, there is very little that is actually green about this beautiful plant. In shade, "Rheingold" does have a soft, pale green color. But plant it in sun, and its delicate needles take on a hue the color of burnished bronze. In fall and winter, the "Rheingold" deepens to a rich russet color, a splash of reddish brown to add interest to the winter garden. 

Another favorite evergreen shrub is arbovitae "Emerald Green". Unlike "Rheingold," which rarely grows more than 3-5 feet tall, "Emerald Green" is almost more of an evergreen tree than an evergreen shrub; a well-established one can reach more than 30 feet tall. Sometimes called "white cedar", it can be given plenty of sun and room and allowed to grow to its full height, or it can be kept pruned or sheared into a beautiful evergreen hedge. The new growth is a bright golden yellow, but older needles deepen into the rich, dark emerald that gives this evergreen shrub its name. 

A different kind of arbovitae, almost a different kind of evergreen shrub, is globe arbovitae. Unlike most evergreen shrubs, which need constant pruning and shearing to maintain your chosen shape, the globe arbovitae, true to its name, forms a compact globe shape without pruning of any kind. This evergreen shrub rarely reachs more than three or four, sometimes five feet at the most, with an equal diameter. Drought resistant, the globe arbovitae makes an interesting and unusual addition to any dry, sunny garden or landscape. 

Of all the evergreen shrubs, few are as rewarding or come in as much variety, as the Arbovitae. They are truly a plant worth growing.