9 Dwarf Evergreen Trees to Grow in Your Yard

Evergreen trees are a hardy type of tree with multilayered branching and green leaves that hold their foliage year-round (unlike deciduous trees, which shed their foliage in the winter). Evergreen trees usually have either needle-like leaves that grow in whorls on their branches (like pine or spruce trees) or broadleaf foliage (like holly trees). Some evergreen trees are conifers, which reproduce by dropping seed-packed cones, while others simply drop their seeds at the end of a growing cycle.

Evergreens are often large trees that reach hundreds of feet in height, but many of the species of these trees have dwarf varieties, which usually reach heights around six feet.

There are a few different advantages to planting dwarf trees, including:

• They are easy to maintain. Dwarf evergreens don’t grow as tall as regular evergreens, so you can more easily plant, prune, and take care of them.
• They conserve space. Small varieties of evergreen trees take up less space than the larger varieties. Rather than one large evergreen that needs a lot of room, you can plant several smaller dwarf varieties instead.
• They are visually aesthetic. Dwarf evergreens are practical, still providing great privacy screens, but they are also visually interesting, making for the perfect low-maintenance hedging for walkways if you’re landscaping small gardens.
  
• They attract wildlife. Dwarf evergreens make great hideaways for small critters like birds, who can also feed off the cone-producing types.

Dwarf evergreen trees come in plenty of varieties, which can work for different landscapes and climates. Read on to learn more about some of these year-round trees to find the best evergreen for your yard.

1. 1. Blues weeping Colorado spruce (Picea pungens ‘The Blues’): Blues weeping Colorado spruce has silvery blue-green needles and hanging branches that hang in a weeping style. This variety only grows between four and six feet high.
2. 2. Dwarf Alberta spruce (Picea glauca): The dwarf Alberta spruce is an evergreen conifer tree native to Canada and the northern US, and a type of white spruce. The dwarf Alberta spruce is a small tree that reaches a mature height of ten to thirteen feet tall and only grows about two to four inches a year. Due to its slow growth rate and ease of care, this tree is a favorite of gardeners looking for a reliable focal point for their yard.
3. 3. Dwarf globe arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis): While some Thuja occidentalis grow more than forty feet tall, these cultivars only grow between three and five feet tall. These trees grow in a single-trunked pyramidal structure with the same flat pine needles as their larger counterparts.
4. 4. Dwarf hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana Gracilis'): Dwarf hinoki cypress has dark green foliage that grows as feathery, soft needles in a loose, pyramidal form. This slow-growing tree needs more than a decade to reach its mature height of six feet. This drought-tolerant dwarf evergreen requires very little maintenance and will tolerate full sun or partial shade. Other types of hinoki cypress may grow up to twelve feet tall.
5. 5. Dwarf pencil point juniper (Juniperus communis ‘Compressa’): This non-flowering tree grows about five feet tall with less than a foot-wide spread of densely packed branches. These narrow trees grow in a columnar shape, with needle-like leaves and reddish-brown bark.
6. 6. ‘Little gem’ (Magnolia grandiflora): This smaller magnolia tree is a slow-growing cultivar of the southern magnolia. Although taller than other dwarf evergreens (with a height of around twenty feet), they are still considered a dwarf evergreen. Similar to standard magnolias, little gem leaves are dark green and glossy with a leather-like feel. The plant also blooms large, white flowers.
7. 7. Miniature moss false cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Squarrosa Minima'): Miniature moss false cypress is a small evergreen conifer that grows between three and five feet tall. It can tolerate several soil types (making it a great choice for rock gardens) and grows soft gray-green leaves.
8. 8. Mugo pine (Pinus mugo): These dwarf trees range in heights between three and twenty feet tall depending on the cultivar, making them great privacy screens and borders. It’s also a great foundation plant and effective at erosion control.
9. 9. Upright Japanese plum yew (Cephalotaxus harringtonia ‘Fastigiata’): These low-maintenance dwarf evergreens have fine, deep green needles. These dwarf yews have a slow, upright growth habit, reaching a mature height of about ten feet (which can take years). They make great accents, privacy screens, and hedges.

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